IAWCC

Champion of 2010

2010-02-08T14:12:00.003-05:00

It's the Monday after the Super Bowl, America's unofficial holiday. Everyone's trudging to school/work with a hang over. The Saints took it to the Colts 31-17. Amazing game all the way around.

I kept my motto for the last two weeks the same whenever I was asked who I thought would win, "My brain says Colts, but my heart says Saints."

I guess this means I should listen to my heart more often. Some of my best (and worst) decisions have been made that way.

But let's not make this about me.

Yesterday was about the city of New Orleans... and the commercials.

Seriously, this is probably the weakest class of Super Bowl Ads in the past decade. There weren't that many that got me to think "wow, that was a good $3 million to spend."

But one company got it right throughout the game: Doritos.

This one was good, though I don't totally get the whole point of stuffing a casket full of Doritos and NOT having a drink to go with it. They missed out on a joint venture with Pepsi for that commercial...

Kinda funny, though, if that ever happened to me... no, wait, that'd never happen to me because the cardinal rule is to never date a chick with a kid. Moving on...

This one was really good. I chuckled a bit. A Dorito samurai... yes, destroy the Japanese culture with snack food muahaha haha haaaaa!!!

Ok,
then, there's the one that literally made me laugh out loud:

Freaking hilarious. Doritos my 2010 Super Bowl Ad winner.

Runner-ups:

The Fiddling Beaver...yes, fiddling... beaver...

And probably the best commercial of the Super Bowl, but sadly the only one of the brand:

If You Laugh, You Lose

2010-02-05T01:25:00.001-05:00

Dear Blogger,

2010-02-02T14:59:00.000-05:00

No, I am not happy with you.

Just like Haloscan you're turning into useless corporate drones.

No more FTP blogs, just your "custom domain" program.

Which, I won't lie, is useless. Why would I create my own domain name and want to keep it hosted on your space?

That defeats the purpose of going out and getting your own domain name.

But I guess this was inevitable that you'd go turn coat on me. Just like former commenting systems, game developers and Joe Lieberman.

It's okay I guess, you're going to stop this by March? I guess that just accelerates my move to a Wordpress blog.

Congrats on alienating me. The person who resisted WP even when everyone else was switching over.

You've basically taken away my paddle while I'm on shit creek.

Looks like I'm gonna be getting on this transition/redesign project quicker than I thought.

This Is Love

2010-02-01T02:18:00.000-05:00

[ Shaz ]
     g'nights Butterheart

Michael
     . . . i'm imagining myself as mel gibson, fighting against the english margarine

[ Shaz ]
     is like Braveheart, but fattening

Michael
     and fighting off Fabio and his butter substitute

[ Shaz ]
     across the sea of shortening

Michael
     i can't believe it's not KA-CHAHHHH
     *dead*

[ Shaz ]
     XD BAHAHAHA

Michael
     i know. we gotta put this into production.

Another Budget Cut

2010-01-27T11:11:00.001-05:00

Democracy at work.

Honestly, where's the money going?

It costs more and more to get an education. It appears that our local governments aren't going to be doing anything to help alleviate these gigantic expenses.

The mere fact that we're in such an era where everyone has put their entire financial future on some company's credit card and interest rate is absurd.

To make my point is the case and point at hand.

We're so desperate to be covering what we've already spent. We spent all that extra money to open all these extra schools, to ensure that the next generation of America has an opportunity to succeed and continue to further this country's innovation and imagination... to continue the "American Dream" if you will.

But the main reason this story caught my eye is this couple of paragraphs:

During the long overnight session, there was anger and there was theater. Two parents broke out sock puppets for their presentation. “Hi everyone, I’m a concerned parent,” said Jane Hirschmann, founder of the antitesting group Time Out From Testing, as she held up one puppet. “Hi,” replied Lisa Donlan of the Lower East Side, holding up another sock. “I am a puppet from the Panel for Educational Policy, and I brought my rubber stamp.”

Some of the hundreds of parents, teachers and students in the auditorium questioned the criteria the city used in making the decisions. Officials from the city teachers’ union said they planned to sue. Others said the city did not provide enough support to the large high schools. A study released Monday by the city’s Independent Budget Office affirmed that schools on the closing list faced unusually difficult challenges posed by their demographics and performed poorly on school progress reports.

Yes, the best way to get your point across to our government leaders are sock puppets.

Jim Henson is totally rolling in his grave right now.

Go Ahead, Try It Out!!

2010-01-26T02:31:00.003-05:00

Woman: Is there a problem, Officer?

Traffic Cop: Yes ma'am, I'm afraid you were speeding.

Woman: Oh, I see.

Traffic Cop: Can I see your license please?

Woman: Well, I would give it to you but I don't have one.

Traffic Cop: Don't have one?

Woman: No. I lost it 4 years ago for drunk driving.

Traffic Cop: I see...Can I see your vehicle registration papers please.

Woman: I can't do that.

Traffic Cop: Why not?

Woman: I stole this car.

Traffic Cop: Stole it?

Woman: Yes, and I killed and hacked up the owner.

Traffic Cop: You what!?

Woman: His body parts are in plastic bags in the trunk if you want to see.

The traffic cop looks at the woman and slowly backs away to his car while calling for back up. Within minutes 5 police cars circle the car. A senior officer slowly approaches the car, clasping his half drawn gun.

Officer: Ma'am, could you step out of your vehicle please! The woman steps out of her vehicle.

Woman: Is there a problem sir?

Officer: My colleague here tells me that you have stolen this car and murdered the owner.

Woman: Murdered the owner? Are you serious?!

Officer: Yes, could you please open the trunk of your car, please.

The woman opens the trunk, revealing that it's empty.

Officer: Is this your car, ma'am?

Woman: Yes, here are the registration papers. The traffic cop is quite stunned.

Officer: My colleague claims that you do not have a driving license.

The woman digs into her handbag and pulls a card out of a clutch purse and hands it to the officer. The officer examines the license quizzically.

Officer: Thank you ma'am, but I am puzzled, as I was told by my officer here that you didn't have a license, that you stole this car, and that you murdered and hacked up the owner!

Woman: Bet the lying son of a gun told you I was speeding, too.

A Tribute

2010-01-22T00:10:00.001-05:00

to a fallen friend.

A man I never got to meet or interact with while I was not sitting behind a computer screen.

Yet, somehow, his life matters in a way to me that makes me feel like the world is a lesser place without him in it.

And it brings a tear to my eye.

That someone who fervently disagreed with me on almost every topic we stopped to talk about. Be it politics, industry, life, love, or just gaming.

Someone who would be just as stubborn and just as witty as I. Someone who would leave a path of d-e-struction from place to place.

Someone who I admired at first for that quality. Someone who, when I had worked so hard to be able to wear a tag near my name for so long, broke away. I followed. This is the type of person he was. He had a realness to his personality that transcended the fact that all we had was a voice server to communicate.

Someone who gave good advice, but only when specifically asked for it. That's a rare quality in a person, most people who dole out advice do it on a whim, hoping to be right with something in life. He didn't much care about being right. Or wrong. He cared about how you, or I, felt about a decision.

He was one of the few I talked to when I thought my personal life crashed. He was one of the few that told me waiting would not make it easier.

I still remember the nights of drinking in front of my computer and hopping into games where everyone knew each other. Everyone had some snippy remark and a joke at someone else's expense.

He was not above any of that. He was right in the middle of it. Even though I lost interest in the community which he built for himself, he still took time out to make sure I was okay. To make sure I didn't get off without a crude joke crossing my mast.

He still invited me to hang out with all the old timers who've been rarely seen over the past 3 years. I still vividly remember that night. Sitting in a conference webcam session, 12 of us, all of us drunk and all of us trash talking.

That will be my last memory of you. And I know that that memory is the one you want me to have.

Years ago a future was laid before me
And I took the task and ran with it as far as I could go
I always wanted to be a part of something like this
You believed in me, and it's all I needed
Before I go, please know that I love you with all of my heart
My heart, my heart, is beating for you
I want you to know that I'll be thinking of you wherever I go
Spoken - September

Another Shocker

2010-01-21T13:21:00.001-05:00

Industry moguls now think that web revenue from advertising is not enough.

Fox News, the New York Times, and a plethora of others have decided to start charging for their online services in 2011.

I'm here to tell you why that's a bad idea and a dangerous precedent.

The internet is based, in most countries, on the precedence of easier communication. That was the original intent of the creation of the net: faster and easier communication with people further and further across the globe. To do so, we're charged a set amount (depends on what country you live in) to be able to access these means of internet communications; be it instant message, social network, or email.

We go to sites like the Times and gulp Fox to gather opinions and facts about the events of the day to share them via web communications.

Let's face it, without television and the internet we wouldn't have a clue about the reality and gravity of the earthquake in Haiti if all we knew about it was a picture and a few paragraphs in a newspaper.

There's more to it in these mediums. Yes, I said mediums; the proper pluralization is media, but we've changed the definition of media over the past decade.

I feel media is now synonymous with tabloids and crappy magazines that profile starlets and harlots. I don't care about those.

I care about mediums.

The mediums which you use to be part of the world and be in the know about how the government is screwing you out of your rights, how other governments are turning blind eyes to genocide and terrorism, and how you don't stand a chance in changing a damn thing from your couch.

How you've been sold the idea of freedom when all you do is live in a world of privilege.

You were given privilege with our public works system, our government's regulations of industry and their "standards."

You're given these based on the contingent that you educate yourself, you contribute to society and live by their rules.

Make no mistake, that is privilege and not freedom.

You stop paying your taxes; you don't stop at red lights; you don't tip your waitress; you're susceptible to lose those privileges.

A judge and any other writer will say you lose your freedom.

But aren't we at the point where we see through that idea anymore?

Hasn't the 8 years of George W Bush, the wars that've taken longer than those against the Germans and Japanese, the economic collapse and the effects of natural disasters [that will go unnamed] taught us anything about the world that we actually live in?

That we pledge and promise millions and millions in aid and compassion, but only deliver slivers of those numbers, of those promises?

Apparently those facts, those opinions, as dissenting and as mudslinging as many of those might be, the sad truth is, are all necessary to continue the continuity of our governing body.

The days when one side bends to the will of George Bush and later blames him for everything that's gone wrong and the days when the other side simply refuses to cooperate in the governing process, these are the days where the people who suffer are the nation's citizens.

Closing off ideas, opinions, facts, and truth are just other ways to spin your side of the story to those that will blindly believe what you say.

You, a giant in the medium in which you operate, are turning into nothing more than a catchy, niche based company; a tabloid.

Spreading nothing but crap about celebrities and trying desperately to interweave that tactic and style into politics.

Make no mistake, I'm not just talking about Fox News in this piece. I'm talking about you too New York Times Co.

Freedom isn't free. But I can always read about those that have died in it's name somewhere else. That's the beauty of the internet. Good luck on your endeavor to take that privilege from us.

I don't know much
But a crutch is a crutch
If it's holding you from moving on
I don't know what to do
Not anymore, not anymore

Manchester Orchestra - Everything to Nothing

Well Deserved

2010-01-20T13:52:00.002-05:00

Way to go Mr. Scott Brown.

Maybe.

Maybe it was just that the Democratic candidate for a seat that's been held by a Democrat for decades was a bitch and didn't deserve the seat?

I'll go with the latter.

Martha Coakley is an idiot.

Very simply put.

This election was gift wrapped for her to win, and she repeatedly shot herself in the ~~foot~~ ~~feet~~ ~~leg~~ head.

The sad part to all of this isn't her negligence to the campaigning process, it's the fact that she made it seem below her to do the things a campaigning politician must do to win.

So while she refused to shake peoples' hands outside of Fenway Park, refused to give public speeches and refused to tell any public or media talking point anything about her values, ideals, or plans; she lost.

For god's sake, she called Curt Schilling a Yankee lover!! She lost the election right there. The biggest stigma around Boston for almost 100 years was their inability to win the World Series. They finally do, on the back of that man. It's like if you called Obama a communist... er... wait, lemme see here; it's like if you called FDR athletic. Or Abe Lincoln a bigot. Or MLK a racist. It's just something you don't do.

So while she loses the big hubbub is that the Democrats are losing their majority and their power in the Senate... I'll hand it off to one of the few Jews to give good interviews...

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c

Mass Backwards

www.thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Health Care Crisis

I sincerely hope you watched all of that.

Skyline

2010-01-19T11:52:00.001-05:00

I miss the sunset on the west coast.

There's nothing like it.

I even miss feeling like a sardine, packed onto the skytrain and struggling to stand.

I miss the hustle and bustle of the city. The concrete. The mass amounts of people.

I miss it. I really do. But if I could just change one thing about it, I wish they had better food.

All in Good Fun

2010-01-15T12:36:00.002-05:00

Thinking about doing a total redesign. Again.

I've grown bored of this one already.

Vigilance

2010-01-14T15:11:00.000-05:00

You've probably heard by now.

Or probably joined one of those, join this group, follow this person, re-tweet this, bullshit endeavors to make you feel good about yourself. Like doing any of that is going to actually help those whose lives have been completely destroyed in Haiti.

Then again, that's the time we live in. Instant gratification is what we strive for.

Yet you're all somehow more preoccupied and worried about Michael Hall recovering from cancer so you don't lose your favorite TV show.

Yet what's even worse is the supposed repayment of the "loans" the US taxpayer shelled out for TARP. You know, the $700 BILLION we gave to bank executives who drove their companies into the ground while they continuously gave themselves larger bonuses that came out of account holders' funds.

How much are they "supposedly" paying back? $117 BILLION over the next decade.

Wow, I wish I got that sort of treatment on my student loans. Don't you? I borrowed $45K, I'll pay you back $12K and we'll all call it even.

Oh that?

Yeah, that's my new Porsche. But I can only pay you back that $12K.

It's a slap in the face and insulting. Not that our President is only forcing the banks to pay back such a small amount after almost all of the ones we bailed out are reporting gigantic profits and bonuses, is that he's stands at the podium, just as he did when he said we'd get a public option for health care. That we could believe in the change he'd bring to the United States...

"My commitment is to recover every single dime the American people are owed," the president said.

Umm, last time I checked, $117 BILLION is not $700 BILLION. It's not even close.

Don't patronize me saying your goal is to recoup all the money spent to help your buddies keep their businesses open when you're only charging a fraction of what we and you are owed.

Lost, even further in all of this, is the crushing defeat in the Governator's eyes. The guy has done everything he possibly could to drag that sorry state's budget to be able to sustain it's people. Yet every time, they voted against his measures to become more financially responsible. All while increasing their demands for services provided by that same chiseled governing body.

I seem to recall Thomas Jefferson calling this an "experiment in government" when Democracy was so implemented in the constitution.

This experiment is coming to a crashing end by those who are supposedly in control.

The fact is, we don't make any better decisions than to these CEO's who've so inappropriately wasted their company's assets.

We want the government to do more for us while costing us less.

Life does not work like that. Politics does not work like that. Finance does not work like that.

Instant gratification will be the death of democracy.

New Radicals - Get What You Give

I Wish I Was Making This Up

2010-01-13T03:31:00.000-05:00

3D was a huge hit at the Adult Entertainment Expo but something (someone?) else generated a lot of excitement too. Meet Roxxxy, the world's first sexbot.

Yesterday one of you opined that if you had to put on a special pair of glasses to watch porn, and I'm quoting here, "Your fapping is a little too involved." The same could be said for Roxxxy because, although she might sound like your dream girl – 5-foot-7 and 120 pounds – the fact remains that she is a sexbot built to satisfy your most primal needs.

Developed by New Jersey-based True Companion, engineer Douglas Hines says the doll will cost between $7,000 and $9,000. That price includes robot Roxxxy, all the required software and a laptop to run it.

Before you get too excited, there are a few drawbacks. Being made of rubber, she looks like every inch the doll she is. Another thing that's likely to leave you a little, shall we say, uninspired, is the fact that she apparently sounds kind of like Stephen Hawking.

Roxxxy has five different pre-loaded personalities. You've got everything from "Wild Wendy," "Frigid Farah," and "S&M Susan," to "Mature Martha" and just plain "Young." If none of those suit your needs, you can have an unlimited number of profiles that you can build yourself. Creepily enough, you can also "swap girlfriends" with your buddies by trading personalities online...

I...
know what...

if.....

there just aren't words for this, I'm sorry.

Churn

2010-01-11T16:11:00.001-05:00

That's what my brain's doing.

I'm not sure where to go next. As any of you readers know, I lose sleep, I lose my mind when I don't know what or where I'm going next.

I've had this feeling for a little over a month now.

I'm past panic mode.

I just want something to materialize, in any direction.

WTF Moment of the Year

2010-01-08T16:50:00.000-05:00

Nay, the new decade. I doubt anything will top what just happened in that video. Rudy, is an idiot. To think we used to like, nay, love this guy as the mayor of New York City is just baffling since his presidential bid and now this bashing of Obama.

Bash the guy for what he deserves: not following through on any of his campaign promises, not for calling a guy who burned himself on an airplane a 'domestic attack' when over 3,000 people died in 2001... but we've never had an attack while President Bush was in office...

I'm sorry, Dave Chappelle as Lil Jon, take over for me here...

The Root of the Problem

2010-01-08T12:14:00.002-05:00

I'm not about political slogans or believing anything a candidate tells you during his campaign. They are always full of shit.

I submit further proof of this politically correct bullshit in the headlines of the New York Times: New Jersey Senate Defeats Same-Sex Marriage Bill, 20 to 14

Homophobes need not read further.

But to those of us who aren't bound to some ridiculous notion that the group of people who wrote the Bible are above such authors such as Shakespeare, Hemingway and Twain; are refraining from calling marriage an 'institution.'

The US divorce rate in 2008 was 40% hardly an institution right?

A 60% success rate is still a failing grade there bucko.

So why all the opposition against allowing gays to marry? Well, I'll tell you the politically incorrect AND the politically correct answers:

Incorrect: We're old, protestant, and close minded assholes who think if it's not the way we do things, it's wrong... except when asking for a favor in an airport bathroom.

Correct: We don't want to give tax breaks and other 'rights' to these couples who would further hinder the amount of tax income the U.S. government receives.

That's honestly the only argument containing any sort of policy besides lawmakers squeamish cries of, "ew they're homosexuals."

Gays and lesbians marrying is the LEAST of our problems. As socially unacceptable as that may seem to many people, it's still not a right you get to deny. Just like when they took down those "for whites only" signs. It made many people uncomfortable, but it was the rights of other people that needed protecting. Too bad that we have a black president, who benefited from those awkward social advances, is too big of a puppet to make a stand and an amendment to allow gay marriage across the nation.

You know, like Abraham Lincoln signing the 13th amendment.

Or Woodrow Wilson supporting the 19th amendment.

No, we don't get men like that anymore. Those who stand up for what is right instead of what is most profitable.

Instead, we get the opportunistic and unrelenting madness of law firms who take on the US government's financial branch: the IRS.

Nobody is a fan of the IRS, the only time you hear from or about the IRS is when you or someone else owes them a ton of money in taxes. However, what we've become so self centered that we forget that these taxes are necessary for our government to function and perform basic duties.

Instead, we have tons of advertisements and commercials for law firms that will get you out of all that money you failed to pay to the government.

We've all seen them, "I owed $140,000 in back taxes but settled for $8,000" sort of deal.

Then everyone gets upset when the government fails to pay people their G.I. Bill, or military hospitals are falling apart.

Has nobody connected these two problems together yet? Are we really that dense? Or just in denial?

I propose a new legislative idea that when you settle how much you owe in taxes for way less, you lose out on the goods and services of the government.

See that meat, it hasn't been inspected, enjoy your dinner.
See that gasoline, yeah, it's probably 70 octane and is watered down, but you can drive with it.
Woops, we forgot to deliver your mail for 85% of the year.

Again, nobody is held accountable for the crises we've put ourselves in. Okay, I'm wrong, we hold a group of people accountable for it, just not the right one.

We're on a slippery slope, one that is not all that different from (and again I hate to bring it up) Hitler's 3rd Reich.

We demonize a group of people for all of America's problems and deny them equal rights and protections under our governing body. This needs to change, and if a black man who has reached the top of the political ladder is not the person to enact such 'Change' then I don't know if it will ever be done.

Just another day and reason why I'm ashamed to be an American.

Propaghandi - Today's Empires, Tomorrow's Ashes

Contradictory

2010-01-06T14:55:00.001-05:00

Don't you find it just a little odd that people are enraged by the theft of a sign to the most famous NAZI concentration camp?

The sign, which weighs 40kg (90lb), was half-unscrewed, half-torn off from above the death camp's gate.
The 5m (16ft) wrought iron sign - the words on which translate as "Work sets you free" - symbolises for many the atrocities of Nazi Germany.
The theft caused outrage in Israel, Poland and around the world. More than a million people - 90% of them Jews - were murdered by the Nazis at Auschwitz in occupied Poland during World War II.

Really? People in Israel are upset about this? Really?

I honestly don't have an accurate metaphor for this because what happened in this place was the most atrocious of crimes, yet the last remaining symbol of this constant memory is still standing. Strange isn't it?

Even worse is that the people who were nearly wiped from the face of the Earth are the ones upset about it.

You don't see any African Americans upset that they took down the "for whites only" signs do you?

Or that they took the nooses off the trees?

You don't see the recovered pieces of the Challenger in a museum do you?

You don't see the bullet holes and blood on the walls of Columbine do you?

For those of you that don't know, Germany is very VERY sensitive about their history during the 3rd Reich.

So much so that they monitor and ban anything that contains their friendly neighborhood swastika. Yet this sign, one of the most oppressive and devastating acts in human history is forever remembered and protected by the Polish government.

Diebstahl Macht Frei

New Decade, Same Shit

2010-01-04T15:27:00.003-05:00

I don't understand the nostalgia or celebration of bringing in a new year or a new decade. Let's face it, we will still be looking at and for the defining factors, stories, music, movies and "cultural phenomena" (which I prefer to call media hype) that made the decade what it was.

Trying my best, I refuse to look back and reflect on my life as it was over the past 10 years. I look at things that I accomplished and people (myself included for some of them) considered them a big deal. Looking back, I don't.

I don't understand how someone can go into a new year with a false sense of hope. Nothing has changed from December 31st to January 1st. Nothing.

There are still people killing each other for no reason other than the fact that it's profitable to someone else.

There's still racism. There's still sexism and there's still religion, to fuck everything up in case all else fails.

The idea that someone can kill in the name of any god is absurd. The pillar of every religion is peace and cherishing life. Yet all we do is deconstruct those and work our way around them to justify killing, for profit, for land, for dominance.

The fact that people so blindly believe what the media spew as gospel is astounding to me, never, ever, is there a justification for taking another person's life unless they directly plan on taking yours. That's it. Self preservation.

No national defense. No terror networks, nothing. What we seem to forget is that through all this there is ample time for governments and more importantly, people, to take action to stop others. But no, the rules of crowd control say that once someone screams 'bomb' everyone panics and runs.

I still remain in awe of this aspect of communication, was shooting off an email about a cartoon making fun of a prophet just below you? You had to start riots and shoot people?

Going back to something I can comprehend, the media, I don't understand that either. What happened? Reality TV hits the air and all of a sudden every news outlet starts deciding to cover celebrity gossip instead of the news. Paris Hilton going to jail is not news, it's stand-up material. Michael Jackson dieing is not news; it's an obituary. I don't care about Paul McCartney getting another divorce and I certainly do not give a shit about what a cop said to a professor at 4AM while investigating a complaint.

I care about what my government is doing to protect my rights, I care about what my government, the people that are elected for the people, by the people; to represent the people as an entity to carry out our wishes; are doing. Do any of us give a shit how people in Iraq live? Or Afghanistan? No, we don't. But 30 years ago the big bad Soviet Union tried to establish their dominance over the region so we intervened.

Do you know what we did? We trained a bunch of troops in the Afghan military to become black ops specialists:

“Bin Laden was, though, a product of a monumental miscalculation by western security agencies. Throughout the 80s he was armed by the CIA and funded by the Saudis to wage jihad against the Russian occupation of Afghanistan. Al-Qaida, literally “the database”, was originally the computer file of the thousands of mujahideen who were recruited and trained with help from the CIA to defeat the Russians.”

When the Russians withdrew, so did we, all the aid we promised to send to help them rebuild never got there. They're kinda mad about that still...

So, using what they could they mounted their offensive against the West in very calculated missions that did the maximum damage, not in amount of casualties, but the suspicion and the successful transformation of turning out "freedom fighting" government full of "liberators" into the evil men who the world points to as morally unjust.

If I stepped foot into Saudi Arabia and shoot 50 people does that give them the right to form a coalition and invade the United States?

Honestly, does that make sense to you?

It doesn't to me.

Okay enough rambling, I'll get to my point:

The most famous person of the 21st century is Osama bin Laden.

What's worse, the people most guilty of terrorism in the past decade are not those of any Middle Eastern descent. They are our governments and our media outlets, those who do nothing but pass more and more laws siphoning more and more of our freedoms away in the name of security and protection against these people.

Terrorism is the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce. I don't see anyone in Iraq, Iran, Somalia or Afghanistan intimidating us, do you?

These people who do, they are here, at home, those that regurgitate the names "Al-Qaeda" "security" and the word that you never hear that is most correct and most relevant in all of our emotions and justifications for killing innocent people halfway around the world: "propaganda."

Anberlin - Dismantle. Repair

The Point of it All

2009-12-31T11:52:00.003-05:00

On the Road: An Angry Message for the Governor
By SEWELL CHAN

SENECA FALLS, N.Y. — This town of 9,000 in the Finger Lakes is famous for its political activism. It was here that Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott and other early feminist activists organized the first Women’s Rights Convention in 1848, an event that is now commemorated by the federally managed Women’s Rights National Historical Park.

Even so, a visitor to the town may have been startled this week to see the large roadside sign on the northbound lane of United States Route 20/New York State Route 5. Addressed to Gov. David A. Paterson, it stated, in neat red letters: “Non-Tribal Businesses Dying Here. Do Your Job!”

The state’s unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent in November, slightly below the national average, but the governor has been struggling to manage a severe fiscal crisis.

The Cayuga Indian Nation of New York, whose ancestors were members of the Iroquois Confederation, which ceded much of western New York to the United States in a 1794 treaty, has been a target of criticism from some residents over its refusal to collect state excise taxes on cigarettes at two trading posts it owns in this area, one of them here in Seneca Falls. According to The Post-Standard of Syracuse, N.Y., local authorities seized the cigarettes in November 2008.

Cigarettes sold on American Indian reservations in New York State for use by Native Americans are generally exempt from the excise taxes. The Cayuga Nation owns the trading posts and the land under them, but it does not have a federally recognized reservation. Some officials, including Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York City, have asserted that tax-free cigarettes from Indian reservations, especially one on eastern Long Island, have fueled an underground traffic in cigarettes — an accusation that several Indian leaders have denied.

THE GOVERNOR IS BLIND HE CAN'T READ THE FRIGGIN SIGN!!!

Top 9 of '09

2009-12-26T15:33:00.014-05:00

This is MY top 9 albums of the 2009 calendar year. This is not a list of past artists who topped charts merely pushing out another album to remain relevant. Regardless of album sales, commercial use, or critical acclaim this is my list of albums that are helping their artist come into their prime. I'm sure I'll post a couple of entries each day and I'll even post some that didn't make the cut that you were probably expecting to see here:

1: Relapse
by Eminem

Honestly, it wasn't much of a retirement now as it? Good.

Honestly, there's very few people left in the world that get the notoriety and fame that propel them to a status of superstar when they sing about hating the people who're buying their records. But he gets away with it. Honestly, I can safely say that the time of famous poets is dead, I doubt we'll ever have another Robert Frost or even a Shakespeare. But I honestly do believe that, though very few and very far between, rap is the only form of poetry left that hasn't been totally corrupted by labels and corporations, to tell the world where they can stick their 401K and their SUVs. All while making well more than $401,000 and driving an Escalade with solid gold rims than spin.

It's beautiful, ironic, almost poetic.

2: Troubadour
by K'naan

Honestly, this is probably my personal album of the year. K'naan was born in Mogadishu, Somalia and lived there through the Somali Civil War. His aunt was a famous singer and his grandfather a poet. His story is one that I hope one day is put into a major motion picture, nothing cheesy like Notorious or 8 Mile. Something real, that means something to people across not just one culture, but many. He and his mother were the on the last commercial flight out of Somalia after she desperately attempted to get their Visa to leave the war torn country for New York City before moving to Toronto suburb. He's performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival (blogstock anyone?) and spoken in front of the UN High Commissioner of Refugees where his career really started.

His life story is a enough to sell me on anything the man says, but it doesn't hurt to be as lyrically inclined as this man is.

3: Life Starts Now
by Three Days Grace

Honestly, the sky is the limit for these guys. As long as front man Adam Gontier's voice can maintain his singing style I don't see them stopping their perpetual need to make songs you want to break shit to. I guess the song "Break" makes plenty of sense now that I stop to think about it. But this album takes a step back on itself just a little. They don't quite back into ballad mode but they take a massive step towards emotions other than just hate and rage. Which is quite a big step artistically. To do this without losing an iota of credibility or raw emotion is so difficult to master. Not to mention in doing so is a felony that artists have been buried and never heard from again for attempting. I hope they keep their bite while making this trek to other parts of the human psyche.

I won't let slip a comparison to Limp Bizkit... shit too late.

4: Tonight Franz Ferdinand
by Franz Ferdinand

Honestly, I thought they fell way off of their self titled debut album when they released You Could Have it so Much Better. So much so I don't even have the album anymore. But the sophomore slump is over and they're back doing everything they should do with all their music. Whether you're listening to "Ulysses" or "No You Girls" of iPod commercial fame you can't help but want to dance to it. It's not quite dance material, but they have this innate timing and rhythm structure to their songs that make them a joy to listen and move to.

5: The E.N.D.
by Black Eyed Peas

Honestly, I'm no big fan of the Peas anymore. I used to like them before America latched on to them and Fergie inexplicably became the leader of the band just because she has a set of mammary glands and they can dress her in nothing but a bra and panties and sell an extra 500,000 albums. But I digress, Will I Am is still one of the best in studio music men in the business, I'm not too keen on his acting career and I hope he stays clear of any more action flicks. He might turn into one of those artists who turn into a success not only in the spotlight performing, but behind the scenes, much like a Dr. Dre figure in the Eminem, Snoop Dogg, 50 Cent sense.

But for the life of me I honestly hope this is the E.N.D. for the Peas as we know it. Mazel tov!!

6: This is War
by 30 Seconds to Mars

Honestly, just a breath of fresh air into the rock scene. These boys have been through a very rough lawsuit with their record label Virgin. The company sued for $30 million after the band failed to deliver 3 albums in an allotted period of time as stipulated in the contract they signed in 1999. The album finally hit shelves at the beginning of the month and quite frankly, I was pleasantly surprised. This album is a slight step away from what made them so successful with A Beautiful Lie yet it still feels riveting and passionate from the writing and performance points.

Hell, even the track they did with Kanye producing it sounds awesome.

7: Ursa Major
by Third Eye Blind

They're long, long, awaited followup to the 2003 album Out of the Vein, this album does not disappoint anyone looking for nostalgia value. The entire album, top to bottom reminds me of their first album that was met with such critical success for songs like "Semi-Charmed Life" "Graduate" "How's It Gonna Be" and "Jumper" though they probably won't have the same sort of commercial success their debut album had, this is not due to lack of musical prowess. The market has simply changed and record labels are not looking toward this genre to be at the top of any Billboard or MTV chart. Sadly, they go unnoticed in a barrage of big name 2009 album releases.

8: R.O.O.T.S.
by Flo Rida

Honestly, this is probably the catchiest song released in 2009, across any genre. Putting aside that single, the rest of the album is surprisingly solid. In a day and age where most new artists are milked for one formulaic single and the accompanying album is just tinfoil, this is a refreshing look into hip hop and how writing, recording, mixing, producing and creating an album should be done. Regardless of genre.

9: Not Without a Fight
by New Found Glory

It pains me to think that a band like this has gone so unnoticed since their hits "My Friends Over You" and "Hit or Miss" in the early and mid 2000's. The punk scene has all but faded from the public eye and these guys were one of the best of the last generation of post-punk. This album will immediately set you back into wherever you were when bands like Blink 182, Rancid, Alkaline Trio, 36 Crazyfists and more made and brought the Vans Warped Tour to prominence throughout the 90's and 00's.

CLOSE BUT NO CIGAR:

21st Century Breakdown - Green Day

There's just something not quite right with this new album of theirs. It feels repackaged, like there's not much variety to it. I feel like I'm listening to the B sides from American Idiot and I don't find it to be worthy of this list.

It's Blitz - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

I know, it's a pretty damn good album; but I'm not their biggest fan. I enjoy the music, but I don't see them as this superpower in any genre of music like some of you do. Good album, one of the better ones of 2009, but not in the top 9.

Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King - Dave Matthews Band

I just don't know what it is, they seem stale, the uniqueness of DMB has worn off. That is bound to happen when 100 other bands out there are desperately trying to be like you and capture your uniqueness into their music. Not saying the album wasn't any good, but it isn't new anymore Dave, sorry.

Beggars - Thrice

Okay guys, the move towards something softer and more tranquil is over, we enjoyed Vheissu and The Alchemy Index. Time to move on to something that more resembles The Artist in the Ambulance or Identity Crisis again.

Light - Matisyahu

I just don't feel this album like I felt his predecessor. There's just a little something missing to it and I can't quite put my finger on it.

The Resistance - Muse

Honestly, you have a sound that is completely unique. Nobody makes better use of distortion and pop riffs into rock than you guys do. But I refuse to believe you are as good as everyone claims. I am just not impressed by it. In the day of voice processing and studios buffering out the flaws in your voice, I feel this is the epitome of a corporate rock album. Not to mention I hear that your live performances are of the Ashlee Simpson, pre-recorded, variety. Not gonna win any points doing that either.

Dear Agony - Breaking Benjamin

I was blown away by Saturate and We Are Not Alone when I was younger, I think everyone else in the knowing universe was too. To fall back into this shell that has been your last two albums is just, disappointing. Step it up a notch guys, give me a FULL album like you did before, not just 2 singles surrounded by crap.

Mary Christ Mask Everybody!

2009-12-23T13:03:00.004-05:00

HeadDesk

2009-12-21T13:22:00.000-05:00

The only proper words I can use to describe what's been happening lately.

So my last interview I drove out to Albany and then almost an hour on the northway. I swear a part of me just wanted to keep on going til I hit P-burgh. Then common sense kicked in as the temperature continued to drop as the day went on.

Anyway on the way home I was stopped and given a speeding ticket. 75 in a 65. I was trying to get around a big-rig that couldn't make up it's mind of what lane to pick.

I don't have many phobias.

But driving at fast speeds with ginormous trucks and drivers who seem to be asleep at the wheel is one of them.

Is there a name for that one? Someone look it up for me.

Also, my mother is trying to tell me that the 3 beer bottles that I found in the corner of the garage is still good to drink...

shocking, considering I haven't brought any beer home since I've been home... so that means it's been there since before I left for Seattle and Vancouver.

So it's been sitting in the garage for the entire summer, fall, and now a bit of winter... but it's still good to drink.

So I opened one and handed it to her.

She refused.

I thought so.

In All Honesty

2009-12-16T14:10:00.001-05:00

I don't see what all the anti-trust hubbub is about when it comes to the EU and Microsoft.

Though most techies will roll their eyes and kick the sarcasm button into overdrive when people mention the gigantic software company, I find myself defending them this time.

The notion that they have a monopoly because they bundle their internet browser with their operating system baffles me. When you go to McDonald's and get a drink, you get it in a cup that has McDonald's written all over it.

I've never heard of anyone bringing a lawsuit against these fast food chains for having a monopoly on all their wrappers, bags, napkins and utensils; have you?

Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said: "Millions of European consumers will benefit from this decision by having a free choice about which web browser they use."

I'm sorry, having a free choice?

They did before... I have IE on my computer, only because it comes with Windows. Doesn't mean I use it, it doesn't mean I have to use it either. I have Firefox, I have Chrome and I have Opera.

It didn't cost me anything to go get them, it merely took 20 seconds to start IE, go to the respective company's website and download their browser, IE hasn't been opened since.

EDIT: Okay, it's opened only to check compatibility when I'm doing design work.

The mere fact that they're trying to say that this is taking away from other companies' business is, in a lesser term, stupid.

Nobody charges money for you to use their browsing software, it is your choice. Your choice of free programs to use to your liking. Nowhere in the PC User's Bible does it say you HAVE to use Internet Explorer.

So after 10 years of this pointless dribble (and $2.44 billion US) Microsoft finally just caved and said, sure, we'll offer options for other companies' products with ours.

Next time you're in a rush and stop in to Tim Horton's for a coffee, ask for them to put it in a Dunkin Donuts cup.

The reality of this is, Opera, one of the smallest used web browsers in the world (2%) is developed by a company where? Norway.

This is nothing more than a business lobbying its government to do something to benefit them. It makes me sick at the sheer stupidity of the arguments that these people are making against a company doing what you would do too. Give your product every bell and whistle you can afford.

In bonus coverage, Israeli security officers attacked a Macbook today. By attack, I mean, put three bullet holes in it.

Officials with the Israeli Airport Authority were quick to defend the attack, which has become something of a media storm in Israel, insisting that the police sapper who was called upon to slay the popular consumer device was “following procedure.”

I'm totally scared to leave the U.S. border now. I mean, I can't go hiking through war zones, I can't rape and kill people in Europe (let alone use Microsoft's software) and now I can't even take my computer into Israel without them shooting it.

I think the term 'Only in America' no longer applies.

30 Seconds to Mars - Kings and Queens

Sometimes, There's Justice

2009-12-14T13:11:00.000-05:00

Three Americans are set to face trial in Iran.

Shane M. Bauer, 27, of Emeryville, Calif.; Joshua F. Fattal, 27, of Cottage Grove, Ore.; and Sarah E. Shourd, 31, of Oakland, Calif. all went to the University of California, Berkeley.

Apparently they were hiking, at least that's what the US government claims, through Turkey and the northern part of Iraq while en route to Ahmed Awa, when they veered off track and wound up in Iran where they since have been arrested and accused of being spies.

The charge of espionage carries the death penalty.

They'll likely be convicted and sentenced to the maximum, whether they're innocent or not. The message it will send to the US government will be a strong one. Though it scares me, because this could be enough grounds to move north from Iraq into Iran.

To take on the role of liberators and freedom fighters, again.

But, BUT,

Sometimes, there's justice. I, for one, would not disagree or be upset with such a verdict and execution of these three scholars turned explorers turned inmates.

How stupid do you have to be to actively vacation in a war zone? I hear Gaza is nice this time of year.

That's like saying, hey kids! We're going camping in the DMZ in Korea!! Don't forget your sleeping bags!!!

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

These people deserve whatever happens to them next. That's all I can really conclude, I mean, if you're told the stove is hot, you see the stove is on, and you still touch it "just to be sure" you deserve the burns.

These people deserve the burns. To actively, as civilians, to enter a part of the world being torn apart by corrupt governments, tribal leaders, and disgruntled citizens is asinine.

Okay, I've basically just restated how stupid and how these morons deserve whatever the Iranian government deems their punishment a few times, I'll leave it at that.

Because justice in America is not justice in Iran, and vice versa. Opposite ends of the Earth have different definitions for government, life, religion, social norms, and yes, justice.

I'd give those three my best wishes and hopes to be returned safe and sound, but they don't deserve it.

I hear Somalia is gorgeous this time of year.

Oh Great

2009-12-11T18:00:00.001-05:00

I bet they'll turn this into an episode of CSI: NY.

Oh how fun the holiday season is.

How stupid people are for trying to get away with things that are of such little consequence that they turn to do something as stupid as this:

A security guard at the Marquis reported hearing the sergeant yell, “Stop! Stop! Show me your hands!” The guard told the police he saw the vendor pull something from his coat — the submachine gun, which the police said later had been stolen in Virginia in October.

The video showed Mr. Martinez turning, the police said, but he moved out of camera range. Police officials, who did not immediately release the video, said it also showed the sergeant reaching for his weapon and raising it.

It also showed Sergeant Newsom, who has been on the force for 17 years, raising his left arm over his chest in hopes of protecting his heart. It is a defensive move rookies are taught in the Police Academy. Police officials were astonished that the sergeant, less than 15 feet from the stubby barrel of a semiautomatic weapon with no hope of taking cover, was cool-headed enough to remember to do so.

I'm sorry what? Raising his left arm over his chest?

Really? Protecting his heart? That's what he was doing?

That's what taxpayer money is going towards?

You mean to tell me you're going to stop a bullet?

I'm pretty sure you will stop it, but I'm pretty sure that sucker's still going to be stuck center-mass.

Anyway, it's a semi-cool story in a weird place where weird things happen. Scary to think I was just there in the summer going up and down those same streets.