Lunch Break Cornucopia

Ahh, lunchtime. Ten minutes to eat, ten to surf, ten to post.

Three quick stories for you this noon:

If I wasn't an agnostic...I'd have to say this is a message from above. Actually, I still do say it is.

Well, it's really official. When your wife says "The romance is over," she's probably right.

Finally, a little homeland security/NAFTA chutzpah for ya.

Have a good rest of the day!

A Little More Zen

Turn up the speakers. Not work safe.

Enjoy a little of the truth spoken softly.

Here She Comes, Miss Penitentiary...Hide Your Cash

This is at once so hot, offensive and bizarre that I'm really not sure what to say. This is one of those situations where there are so many punchlines that I can't come up with one.

And the Best Way to Burn Off Your Turkey and Dressing is...

The elliptical trainer. But, the story here to me is that second place went to the rowing machine. I've gotten pretty serious about working out (thanks, honey) and I've never used a rower. Crazy, man. Crazy.

Happy T-day, folx.

Viva Chavez!

Man, I love Hugo Chavez.

A good deal of it is because he's taking from the rich and giving to the poor. But, I have to admit that his spitting in the face of W is a major plus.

Has anyone else heard that Citgo, which is 7-11, is all Venezuelan petroleum? I'm pretty sure that's right. If anyone else has more info, please put it in comments. Now I just need to get 7-11 to put a station in Oxford or nearby.

By the way, if anyone has the e-mail addy of the guys who did "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," the documentary on the failed coup attempt against Chavez, pass that on. I want to know when it's going to be out on DVD and what the delay is.

It's F-F-F-F-Frickin' Freezing

#@!% it's cold!

Sorry, just needed to get that out. Consider this an open thread for the long, holiday weekend. Happy Tofurkey day, kids.

A Little Bit of Zen

So presidential.

I Am A Jerkface

Something happened this weekend that has resulted in some soul searching over the last couple of days and is now prompting this entry.

My lady and I were invited to a couple's house this Saturday evening. She works with the woman and they both work at the university, as do we. Per usual, the conversation eventually turned to politics. I ended up quite possibly offending this very nice christian couple with my rants against the radical right, christian conservative power grab that I see going on in this country right now. This is after, mind you, the woman made clear that they are actually tired of being blamed for what's going on in the country and being lumped in with the extremists of the christian faith. They are super-cool hippie type folks with views not far at all from my lady's and mine. They just happen to be christian.

So, after my girlfriend balled me out a little on the ride home I realized I was a out of line and insensitive. I didn't make clear that I was separating them from the targets of my wrath.

Now, I'm not the most sensitive guy on the planet, but I'm not a totally self-centered jerk, either. So, after thinking about it I realized they got the brunt of some things that have nothing to do with them. One is probably my frustration at the political and social isolation I feel here, which makes what I did extra stupid. Alienating some of the coolest people we've met is not my swiftest recent move. The other thing that I see going on in myself is some serious anger toward the moves this country is making toward theocracy.

I am angry that the radical christian right is using churches and activist groups to set the policy of this country. I do not think that it's cool that anyone who isn't an evangelical christian has to endure policies decided based on that faith. I honestly don't think people even realize how often it happens.

Tried to buy beer on Sunday? What about hard liquor? Try to get a bottle of Jack Daniels on Sunday here in Ohio. It can't be done. Why? Because long ago a large group of christians decided their flock should spend Sunday in church or at home and not drinking. Think that common sense and business benefit will eventually win out? You might want to think again. Why is it that you can't just keep your religion's rules within your own religion and out of everyone else's life?

Try to tell me that the current war on homosexual marriage--you know what, let's call it what it is, a war on homosexuality--isn't about people's beliefs being threatened. It's the only possible explanation for why it is that some man marrying another man or a woman marrying another woman is of any interest to someone else.

So, I am presented with a dilemma. I am outraged at the arrogance of the religious right to assume they have a "monopoly on God." I do not see it as fair or even smart for everyone to live under the religious rules of one group. I am also incensed at the hypocrisy of our country imposing our will on Muslim nations, telling them they can't run their governments as theocracies when the reality is we are living in one. I am very angry and I want to take action. But, I don't want to offend those of faith who would side with me.

Any suggestions?

Oh yeah, by the way...Happy Holidays!

(Thanks to Huff Po for leading me to some of the reports used to help me research this)

Proof Humans (Especially Texans Evidently) Should Not Be Trusted With Other People's Lives

I was pro-death penalty even for a time after I saw the light and switched over from the dark side (the right) fourteen years ago. The final straw was several years ago in a mass comm law class. The proff was explaining that just under normal margin of error circumstances, we've killed tens of innocent people. He went on to explain that given the evidence coming up from DNA exoneration and anti-death penalty advocate research, it's very likely a larger number than that, probably in the low hundreds.

The more I learn about it, the more it scares me.

Thanks to Huff Po for leading me to that one.

What's Grosser Than Gross?

Earlier this week the New York Times ran that gory picture of suicide bomber ruminants. It's about time someone showed something that communicated that there's a war on.

But, yesterday turned out to be a particularly foul day for news. In my scanning of the usual suspects (BBC News, CNN International, Huff Po and Drudge just to begin) I found these two stories that are particularly...well...judge for yourself.

There's the teenage sex party mom or the Indian hospital patient who's eye got eaten by ants.

They got me thinking this might actually be a good discussion starter (and reminded me of those awful grosser than gross schoolyard jokes).

Which of those two news stories do you find more appalling and why?

A sort of manifesto...sort of

Having four months ago relocated from Austin, Texas to Oxford, Ohio (referred to by good friend Raff as the a-hole of conservatism), I have found it necessary to find a way to reach out to my liberal brethren (and...sisteren?). While this is a positive thing for all those with a mind capable of complex rational thought (aka all liberals), it is decidedly important for me here and now--November 2005, Oxford, Ohio.

Why, you ask?

Over the last four months I have:

*Had more trouble making friends and meeting like-minded people than after any interstate move (nine lifetime) or international move (two lifetime).

*Been told several stories of racially and politically motivated violence in this community, some from people directly involved with the victims.

*Heard and read stories of unequal treatment for minorities by police officers and other officials. Keep in mind that the story I actually read did not denote the postponing of a show on campus by a black rapper for "special permits" from the police as controversial in any way, just matter-of-fact.

*Had the epithet "fag" yelled at me out of a car window twice while walking the streets of Oxford. This was after I removed my earrings for my job search, not before.

So, what am I planning to do here?

*I will write in my usual informal style about national and local issues...or non-issues. You'll find I don't always discriminate.

*I will point out news stories that are politically important, personally infuriating, or completely useless or tasteless and therefore hilarious to me.

*I will give liberals in Oxford, Ohio and the surrounding areas (as well as the rest of the world to a lesser extent) a chance to speak their minds. Goodness knows it's not that easy for them to do it in day-to-day Oxford.

*I will try to connect said liberal folk for political exchange and social intercourse.

*I will make fun of humanity in generally and people who commit jackassery in specific.

*I will vent my anger and frustration at the small-minded, bigoted jerkfaces that make up a huge portion of this community and this country because being conservative isn't a viewpoint, it's a lack thereof.

Yes. Yes. I am grouchy about that. Get used to it.

So, you see, my isolation and frustration benefit you, dear reader. Even if you don't agree with my point of view, or those of my co-writers, you will be entertained. I can promise you that much.

-M