Shark cruelty, poison curry, and a night of oddities April 22, 2009

Well tonight seems to have been a night of oddities. First…Martinis and Oyster shooters do not mix (lesson learned!), Secondly…according to the bus it is 1/1/97 and it is 1130am. Hmm hopefully they fix that soon cause that could get really annoying! And lastly…i have a new pact…at the age of 85 I will be moving to South Florida with Selina and my fellow HPUers and we shall all play shuffleboard with out walkers…yes…we actually discussed this. Selina suggested we get state department tattoos too since according to Erik we will all live in DC and most of us will work for the state department. Oh well…i never said my friends were sane…just fun!

The President of Liberia was on the Daily Show last night, and if you get a chance, you should check it out! Heres the Link!

Hmm…scientists in Germany actually studied the spit of people from around the world…their belief…”(W)e can get more insights into human populations (from saliva) than we would get from just studying human DNA.” However…the study ended up concluding that people spit regardless of region or diet didnt vary significantly…guess you cant learn more from saliva then DNA…oops!

Wow…and we thought that our justice system was harsh…a Japanese woman was sentenced to death for the deaths of 4 people and making over 60 ill at a county fair from her serving a curry dish.  Dang…the death penalty for mass food poisoning?!  Oh..what?!?!?  It wasnt food poisoning? Oh she actually poisoned the crowd with arsenic for being shunned by her neighbors? Ok…I guess thats actually a just reason for the sentence then! 

A case of animal cruelty in Australia has me stumped…a live shark was left on the doorstep of a local newspaper….First…how do you catch a shark, keep it alive, and transport it across town without anyone noticing?  Secondly…Why???? Is this some new mafia gangster message to someone at the newspaper? Were they seeking publicity? Cause if thats the case they did it all wrong. Or is this some late April fools prank…either way…if caught the local police plan to charge them with animal cruelty charges…

Later!

Mexico violence reaches US, why you shouldnt have a shotgun in your car, and hope for Zimbabwe? February 10, 2009

Solving the Economic Crisis with Jon Oliver

Well the violence from Mexico’s war on drugs is spilling over into the US and not in the Border-towns like everyone expected.  Violence has reached bigger cities like Atlanta and Phoenix. Violence is following the drugs.  Drug customers who owe money are kidnapped until they pay up. Cartel employees who don’t deliver the goods or turn over the profits are disciplined through beatings, kidnappings or worse.The violence may not be as severe as the violence seen across the border, but it doesnt mean its not present. In Birmingham AL 5 men were found with their throats slit. They had apparently been tortured with electric shocks before being killed in a murder-for-hire orchestrated by a Mexican drug organization over a drug debt of about $400,000. The lessons to be learned?  Sharing a border with a state that is on the verge of ailure can be catastrophic for any nation, so that means the US people and administration better wake up to the implications that are trickling in with the drugs….

When will people learn?  Showing up at the White House with a rifle will never end well!  Even if you are making a “delivery.”  Second…a guy showing up at the white house in a pick-up truck with a delivery for Obama is unlikely, and will never actually see the President, so Im not sure his plan, whatever it may have been, was well thought out.   Its like my Grandmas rant when Bush was in office.  Although she would have loved to take a shotgun to him, she at least was realistic in the fact that he wouldn’t show up on her doorstep, so it would never happen. (ps:  she always said it jokingly..kinda)

Why are all the US brokers getting bonuses? The explanation going around that if you dont pay them, they wont stay is ludicrous. If they wont accept a pay but or no bonus, then let them walk away. If they do, they just proved how stupid they are to voluntarily walk away from a well paying job in a horrible economy, and if they dont then you still have high quality people working for you. Even if you do, there has to be a realization that over 500,000 people are without jobs, many with degrees, who would gladly take a position with any company at this point. Heck I have a friend who would!  Need a name, just ask!

Well, Tsvangirai is due to take office of Prime Minister of Zimbabwe on Wednesday, thats assuming the old crazy Mugabe doesnt do something to cause chaos again.  Even if the power-sharing deal takes place there is a huge battle to be waged over the economy and the country.  Since most nations outside the AU have reservations about the successfulness of the deal(mainly due to Mugabe, and the Tsvangirai’s capabilities to lead) there is an unlikelihood that any changes will occur immediately. The EU, UN, and US have economic santions in place and are reluctant to relase them until there are signs of change, but it could be a dangerous tactic. In order to effect change there needs to be some method for the new PM to use, and right now thats not available.  Maybe releasing certain sanctions for a specified time as a sign of cooperation would be the best tactic that the world could make for the people of Zimbabwe.

Later!

Stupid bailout requests, UN bombed, and some Fareed Zakaria January 15, 2009

Fareed Zakaria on The Daily Show…Enjoy!

Economic bailout anyone? How about $50milllion to Las Vegas for an Organized Crime Museum which they argue will be a sure fire tourist attraction…ummm…im thinking Vegas Casinos make enough money to build it if they really want it…and Im kinda guessing that building a museum isnt a necessity at the moment…especially with recently unemployed living as homeless on the streets in -10 degree weather in the midwest!  How about another bailout request…Edwardsville AL would like a $375 million dollar stimulus, american libraryassociation would like one too, and then there was the request from the environmentally friendly golf courses, and more….forget the little man…lets fund the ridiculous and unnecesssary…

As if I needed another reason to gripe about the Israel/Hamas fighting, Israel has bombed the UN headquarters in the region, as well as a local hospital, and a school…they are claiming that Hamas terrorists were hiding at those locations and firing at Israeli troops from them…of which no claims hae been proven to be true and Israel is stalling on showing their intelligence that led to their bombing decisions…all this right before they were to meet with UN Leader Ban…stupid move Israel!

Ive been extremely boring today…Ive been doing nothing but reading WWI in Africa and trying to stay awake while Im reading about the tactics and operations of the different forces…all of which are irrelevent in many ways because they all were pretty much going in circles and fighting with little to know intel, resources, or reasons…oh well…almost done…

Later!

The answer to piracy, A nanny in the senate, and 15 minutes of fame…again December 10, 2008

The Daily Show-President Doofus and President Gallant

The Daily Show-Provinces in Peril

Well I just some distrubing factoid…The top 10 fastest dying towns…Take a guess…ones close to home (well Ohio home anyways)…Middletown…is it true that AK Steel is leaving?! Wow!

LOL looks like Joe the Plumber hasn’t learned the old adage, dont bite the hand that feeds you.  Apparently he is reporting now that McCain disgusted him and that hes a Palin supporter. Dude, it was the McCain campaign that gave you your 15 minutes/or more of fame, not the Palin campaign…and stop trying to grasp at the last straws of media attention and go live your life!

Oh dear lord!  As if politics weren’t crazy enough…Fran Drescher is eying Clintons Senate seat…I pity the fool who has to hear that voice on CSpan!

Well the cruise line industry has addressed the problems of pirates off the coast of Somalia…their new stance is that they will evacuate ship to avoid attack…Everyone overboard!

Well Im off to eat, breath, and sleep philosophy until this paper is done!

Later!

First Friday in Honolulu, 3D NFL, and buy one get one free December 6, 2008

Prop 8 The Musical

Colbert Report-War In Afghanistan

Well the talks continue…as the auto industry pleas for $34billion fall on deaf ears in Congress, and the $25billion bailout proposal doesnt get the votes…a new deal is being discussed between the White House and Congress for a proposed $15billion bailout…some how I dont think this will appease the auto workers, but hell, somethings better then nothing.

How about watching that favorite sporting event…but in 3-D…The NFL is offering such an experience…this is one thing I would love to see…I wonder if we can get those cool glasses in our favorite teams colors yet?!

Buy one get one free…everyone knows that saying…but how about applying that line of advertising to something other than bubble gum, and the simple things…how about cars…thats right, cars!  An Auto dealer in Brussels is doing exactly that, but im gonna go out on a limb and state that Hell would freeze over first before a US auto dealer made that offer!

Well tonight was interesting.  I went to First Friday with some people from class and it wasn’t as entertaining as previous First Fridays…no real street performers, no karoake (except fromKyle…which Ill get to in a minute), just walking around. So Jeremy and I decided that Kyle needed some cultural education and we all went Art Gallery browsing.  Some of them were ok, but there was one gallery that I wasn’t a huge fan of.  It basically had nature photography with an advertising quality approach.  It was too simple and cliche for me. One of the galleries had some interesting pieces, including some cool mixed media art, and these bizarre shoes.   I have a few pictures on my phone of the one shoe that was made out of fish skin and had fins and everything.  It was priced at $700, and I dont think you could actually wear them! Id be afraid to at least.

We eventually made our way to Du Vin and Indigo for some drinking. And at Indigo, Kyle “taught” us how to “dance”…and I use those terms loosely…think robot meets A Night at the Roxbury…it was fun though. I also did a little head banging to Jack and Diane by John Mellencamp and of course to I Love Rock and Roll.  Indigo has several different rooms with all types of music.  We made our way back to the fire room where some R&B/Hip-Hop was being played…and what came on but a little Mary J.  Everyone in the group flinched, but I tried to show them a little Zumba…unsuccessfully since there was little to no room to actually do anything but the “Whoo” part…a few of you know what Im talking about! In addition to those wonderful songs, I tried to teach Jeremy and Kyle how to Lean Like a Cholo…they thought I was nuts.  But this was all better than having Kyle serenade us with Xmas music like he did on the shuttle ride back from campus earlier!  Even he was slightly suicidal after that ride and he was the one that did the singing!

The only downside to the night (excluding Kyles singing) was the fact that I left Indigio early with the intention of catching the “last” bus back home, but ended up missing it anyways.  The bus stops running up the Pali I thought at like 12:30, but apparently it is earlier, so I only caught the bus 1/2 way home and ended up walking the rest…Normally that wouldnt be fun anyways, but it had started to drizzle and I was wearing my sandals that decide they dont like wet pavement, so I was slipping and sliding the whole way back…I guess I could called a cab, but oh well!

Im off to relax no and then tomorrow paper write…

later!

 

 

 

The wonders of drug testing, anger at Texas, and a unique weapon December 3, 2008

Ok..so I have decided that I am twisted and so need to be stopped!  When I saw that there had been 6 players suspended by the NFL for drug tests, my heart started racing…cause I was hoping ot see 2 names…Pat and Kevin WIlliams…and when I opened up the article, there were those names I was so hoping ot see!!!! Now I know some of you are wondering why I am so twisted and evil hearted…well its simple…Green Bay football.  After the last 2 weeks performances we needed some outside help, and since the Vikings have a 2 game lead on us in the division, the suspension of their two big defensive frontmen means that we may actually have a shot again!   Ahh my heart is racing!  Now pending the court appeal by the Williams’ they may be done for the year!  Giddy dance being done …ok maybe I should make it clear…Im not happy about them being suspended as players, Im just happy what it means for their team, and the chances of my team!

Well, well, well…its nice to see that the Bush administration isn’t completely incomptent (has Hell frozen over?)  Rice is trying to step in and mediate the whole India/Pakistan mess that is boiling ot the surface after the attacks on Mumbai…Good! Last thing we need are two nuclear powers resorting to stupid tactics if you catch my drift…

So, I caught wind of this article on yahoo, and was so mad after reading it…hello its called IO Waivers! Move some of these people out! Now I have another reason to not be a huge fan of Texas…help your MR/DD now!

WEll in a lighter note…kinda…a man was attacked the other night with a knife in California…but don’t worry, he’s ok. Thanks to a Candy Cane…thats right, a Candy Cane! He used it to defend himself against the attacker. FYI…the Candy Cane wasn’t one of those candy ones you eat but rather the 2 foot lawn ornament type!

Well Im off to dive into the world of drugs…Meixcan Drugs that is…ah the wonders of grad school paper writing!

Later!

Thoughts of Anthrax, philosophical mind meld, and other news December 1, 2008

Well…one class down, 3 more classes to go…and my final presentation is done!  Yay!  We did really well for winging it!  Now Im on to a paper due tomorrow, and then on to my final paper for Juarez’s class..almost there!  I finish with my mind melding around some philosophy…time to release my analysis and let the crazy jumble in…almost!

Well, Im not sure what to make about this recent terror prediction…Part of me thinks its fear mongering, and the other part believes it could be a legitimate threat…So here’s the info…Apparently in a brief to VP-Elect Biden, there is a distinct possibility of a terror attack against the US by 2013 using biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons.  Now this is kind of a broad choice of weaponry, but i guess not impossible! If you want to read the full article, click here. Now Im off to think of daisies and rabbits and other things like the future winter joy(aka snow) Im about to experience, and will no longer think of anthrax…at least until i get an envelope full of white powder, in which case then anthrax will be back on my mind!

Actually Im a little more concerned with the growing tensions between India and Pakistan following the mumbai attacks…I really hope that the nuclear checks and balance system works, because the last thing we need is this escalating even more!

Well im off to write, and to ponder the current cabinet choices by Obama…hmm…what do I think about Clinton as Secretary of State?  Ill get back to you!

Later!

The top 5 things I learned today… November 22, 2008

John Oliver-The Buccaneer Stops Here

Things Ive learned today…

1)Pandas do not want hugs. Now I could understand this story a little better if it was a little kid that did this, but noooo….Apparently in Beijing a college student broke into a Panda’s cage wanting a hug from the bear. Instead he got a bite, and not a love bite, but an attack bite on several body parts. Apparently this is not the first person the bear has attacked, but you can hardly fault the bear when people keep breaking into his home!  If I had some strange person walk into my place wanting to give me a hug, I probably wouldnt bite them, but id sure as heck probably punch them!

2) Yoga is no for Muslims. Malaysias top Islamic body ruled against yoga stating that it had other elements of religion that would corrupt Muslims.  Hmm…so much for the exerecise.  Im betting they havent seen the athiests who practice Yoga…the Hindu “chants” can be left out people!

3) That apparently Peace Deals aren’t worth the paper they’re written on.  After agreeing to a cease fire inthe Congo, the rebels decided that it wasn”t for  them after all, and continued the fighting.  Well after much international (UN) hoopla on the ordeal, they’ve stopped, but now have staged a rally in a town to show their strength…and Nkunda states “do not be afraid of me”.  Hmm…a little hard when youve been going town to town killing, maiming, and kicking people out of their houses….and more of course.

4) That apparently some people are good at math! Einsteins equation E=MC2 has been proven, finally. Now thats dedication!  My mind sees 2+2 and freezes. (ok Im not that bad, but you know what I mean)

5)Spiders have space legs.  Apparently spiders sent to the International Space Station for an educational project have gotten the hang of weightlessness.  Umm…is anyone else concerned about spiderwebbs overtaking the station, or giant space spiders coming down to earth and stringing us all up? Ok Im being stupid now.

Enjoy the link…a little more John Oliver fun

Later!

The missing belly button, you inside Bush’s head, and a rant on propaganda via diplomats November 20, 2008

Great…thank you Victorias Secret!  Because of your runway show we now get the enlightening and irrelevant question posed to us…”Who doesn’t have a belly button?”  Apparently model Karolina Kurkova doesnt have one, and now its leading to all kinds of wonderment on if its due to her being a problem child from birth or due to cosmetic surgery.  Apparently those low rider jeans and the crop tops are leading a trend in plastic surgery to have those belly buttons altered.  I for one, have more to worry about than my belly button…take student loans for one! Whats the media coming to if this is news?!

And if this wasn’t worrisome enough, apparently the US state dept has lost their minds too… Ken Griffey JR has become a diplomat.  Now, I know, most of you are probably thinking…”who cares”, but since this is what Im getting my MA in, its a little disconcerting that a baseball player will be a diplomat.  Luckily, after reading more than the articles heading(and my heart returned to a normal rhythm), I discovered he won’t actually be in charge of anything but meets and greets, and basically being a propaganda tool for the government by …how was it put…”talk to young people and to spark their interest in America and in our culture.” Basically, Im thinking Griffey should give up his baseball player status and become a Peace Corps volunteer!  Im still disillusioned from class when I put two and two together that the PCV was basically a propaganda tool too…stupid propaganda!

Well today was World Philosophy Day.  And I had class tonight…philosophy class that is. Although on my Thursday night blogs I usually post the funnies from class, but tonight was a rather disturbing and dark class, so Im not.  We talked about killing people, using the dead bodies in war for barricades, bombs, and influencing public sentiment, and then of course, how there is no morals in politics!  So instead, Im gonna blow peoples minds by reposting one of the thought provoking questions from an article I read…

ARE YOU THE SAME PERSON WHO STARTED READING THIS ARTICLE (or BLOG)?…

Consider a photo of someone you think is you eight years ago. What makes that person you? You might say he she was composed of the same cells as you now. But most of your cells are replaced every seven years. You might instead say you’re an organism, a particular human being, and that organisms can survive cell replacement – this oak being the same tree as the sapling I planted last year. But are you really an entire human being? If surgeons swapped George Bush’s brain for yours, surely the Bush look-alike, recovering from the operation in the White House, would be you. Hence it is tempting to say that you are a human brain, not a human being. So the view is that even if the surgeons didn’t implant your brain in Bush’s skull, but merely scanned it, wiped it, and then imprinted its states on to Bush’s pre-wiped brain, the Bush look-alike recovering in the White House would again be you. What if surgeons imprinted your mental states on two pre-wiped brains: George Bush’s and Gordon Brown’s? Would you be in the White House or in Downing Street? There’s nothing on which to base a sensible choice. Yet one person cannot be in two places at once.

In the end, then, no attempt to make sense of your continued existence over time works. You are not the person who started reading this article.

Now that Ive blown your mind, Ill leave you alone…

If you want to blow your mind more, here’s the link to the article from above…Four Philosophical Questions to Make Your Head Hurt.

Later!

Religious leader’s no-no, cookoos at Neverland, and the auto bailout November 17, 2008

Steven Colbert and Formula 4ou1

Well I thought Id kick of tonight’s blog with a funny link to Colbert!

Apparently a woman in WI pleads no contest in a toilet bowl corpse case.  She helped hide a corpse in a toilet bowl so that they could continue drawing on her social security.  They? you ask.  Well she did it with her “religious leader.” Note to self, religion freaky. (Now can anyone tell me where thats from?!? =))

Michael Jacksons woes are continuing.  In case you havent heard he lost Neverland Ranch to foreclosure, and now is being sued by an Arab Sheik who loaned him $7 million dollars for a new album and auto-biography.  The Sheik thought he would get a return on his investment, but now is out the money.  My main problem with the loan isnt that it was given (cause if your stupid enough to give $7 million away with nothing in writing then its on you!) but that he thought Michael’s music career would re-bound the child molestation charges.  Hmmm…is the Sheik living in reality or has he joined Michael in Lala land?

This whole auto-bail out proposal is giving me headaches!  Should they, shouldn’t they?  Well I don’t believe the GOPs answer (which is to take 25 million already given to the auto industry for search on renewable energy, etc and remove all stipulations on how its used) is a good answer.  That would just perpetuate the problem even more! It was their lack of accountability and spending habits that did this in the first place.  Im ok with the Dems proposal to take 25 million out of the wall street bailout and give it to the autos, but thats not going to happen since the White House is opposed to using any of the 700+ billion for the auto industry, and the Senate wont get 60 votes supporting it.  I myself am not a fan of any bailout!  I didnt like the $700 billion bail out for Wall St, and Im not liking this one.  That being said, when almost 2 million people are facing unemployment if something isn’t done, then we have to do something.  That many job cuts would be worse for the economy than a bailout! It would drain the unemployment system and created in some cases failed cities! All I can say to the politicians, is decide already and stop playing politics!

Fun google search that led to my blog…”the coolest pit-bull”.  Awe…someones searching for either a really cool pit-bull, or the one that drove itself! Is there one cooler than that? I wonder…

Later!