Archive for 2010
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[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 4, 2010 by admin in Politics
Sunday, July 4th, 2010How Barack Obama taught me that irony is a sorry kind of slapstick.
 I hope the world can handle all the peace and democracy we keep delivering them |
It’s painfully ironic for me to become as cynical as I have about Barack Obama, especially in light of the fact that his remark on the campaign trail that “Cynicism is a sorry kind of wisdom” was one of the things that helped inspire me to vote for him. I know now – and I did deep down inside then – that in spite of his promise of no permanent bases in Iraq (the kind of language that Bill Clinton loved using), and his implied intention to get America disengaged from wars of aggression abroad, there is absolutely no way his presidency means America’s withdrawal from Iraq or Afghanistan. RNC chairman Michael Steele’s bizarre proclamation that the war in Afghanistan is a “war of Obama’s choosing” doesn’t surprise me at all either; Steele confirmed his ignorance back in April when he played the race card by saying that he and President Obama have a slimmer margin of error because of their race. Which of course left him wide open to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs saying “I think Michael Steele’s problem isn’t the race card, it’s the credit card“, in reference to Steele’s lavish personal expenses as RNC chair. No, Steele’s idiotic statement fits nicely with a long tradition in politics of creating a problem while you’re in office, and then blaming the new guy when you’re out. Much like Vietnam was perceived as Nixon’s war even though LBJ had every chance to end it, and much like Carter was blamed for the Iran hostage crisis even though – as apalling as the likely truth is – it was Republicans who engineered the hostages’ extended captivity, Barack Obama will almost certainly inherit the two wars the Bush administration started as part of his own legacy; the GOP has already done a pretty good job (via tea partiers) of pinning the bailouts of the Bush era on the Obama administration even though they were legislated before Obama was even in office. Read the rest of this entry »
The End Of The World? It’s All In Your Head.
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 3, 2010 by admin in Lifestyle & Culture
Saturday, July 3rd, 2010Yeah, yeah. Things fall apart; the center cannot hold, yadda yadda. Maybe all this recent eschatology is actually just taurine scatology.
  Is the end of the world near? Probably not, but talking about it sure sells a lot of books and DVD’s |
Okay, western civilization. You had your shot, and the best you could muster was Lady Gaga, Glenn Beck, mortgage derivatives, and American Idol. So when the hell are you going to end like any other self-respecting civilization? Well, pretty soon, according to the seemingly intelligent people who’ve posted 18 pages of immensely detailed commentary on sites like this. And also according to seemingly intelligent people like Michael Ruppert, former LAPD officer, writer, and founder/editor of From The Wilderness , the popular newsletter and website devoted to investigating political cover-ups and peak oil issues. I recently watched the film Collapse
Why I Won’t Live Where The Sun Don’t Shine
[ 1 Comment ]Posted on July 2, 2010 by admin in Clean & Green
Friday, July 2nd, 2010Wherever the wind blows me is where I’ll be settling down. Thinking about going off the grid? Here are some handy tools for finding the best place to exploit renewable energy sources.
I mentioned to a friend today that I was doing more research for my plan to build a wired, off-the-grid home, and he nearly spit out his coffee. I asked him what he thought was so bloody funny, and he looked first at my cell phone – which had just been ringing – and then at my laptop, and then at my face, smirking. Which all somehow was meant to imply that I was some rabid technophiliac that had a device for everything, and was always using it, and that I’d need solar panels covering an area the size of the Sahara to effectively go solar. Which I imagine is a common misconception about living “green” and “wired” at the same time. The fact is, in spite of having a computer on ALL THE TIME at home, I only use an average of about 9kWh a day, which is about a third of the national average. How do I do it? I never use AC, I have a small, energy efficient fridge, and I use lights only as needed. I also take in most of my video entertainment on the computer instead of the typical TV/DVD/Cable setup many people use. My usage would go up a bit if I had a washer and dryer in my apartment, but I bet I could still keep it well under the 30kWh a day that is the national average. So enough defensive tooting of my energy miser horn, the fact is that a lot of this is irrelevant, because I’m planning a house from the ground up, and basing my decision for where to live partly on the feasibility of wind and solar power. So how feasible is it to generate your own power and get off the grid? If you want to stay in an urban area, you have some challenges ahead, but it’s obviously a simple equation between your energy consumption, and how much you can generate. Duh. So how much can you generate? That obviously depends completely on where you live, but how do you determine how much to rely on wind, and how much to rely on solar wherever you live? That’s where we’re in luck, because compared to even a year or two ago, there’s a wealth of information out there to help you. Start out by figuring out your usage using a tool like the Lawrence Berkeley Labs’ Home Energy Calculator. And once you have a realistic handle on your usage, the best resources for taking an in-depth look at solar and wind resources nationwide are probably the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Solar Maps and the Department of Energy’s Wind Powering America Wind Resource Potential Estimates site, respectively. And if – as I am – you’re basing your choice on where to settle on the resources available, you might give also give some thought to MicroHydro. In our next piece we’ll be looking at real estate issues and site selection. Looks like I’ll see you in the Southwest, if the maps below are any indication. Read the rest of this entry »
Cell Phones In America: Can You Hear My Cow?
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 1, 2010 by admin in Technology
Thursday, July 1st, 2010Why does American cell service suck so much, and why don’t we do anything about it?
 Can you hear my cow? Steve Jobs demonstrates the exact grip and physical location that will allow your new iPhone to function properly. |
As a Verizon customer, I can’t wait until next year when Verizon finally offers the iPhone so I can have a piece of crappy overpriced hardware to match my crappy overpriced service. Just what is it with cellular service in America? We pay more than any other country for service that’s so bad that we need a need a wireless bill of rights to defend ourselves. Call service is worse than ever, billing and contracts are insane (even the government is finally saying so ) but sadly, the most effective consumer activism I’ve seen so far has been as a result of New York Times blogger David Pogue’s Take Back the Beep Campaign. So why don’t we as consumers take more action? My theory is that we can’t get anything organized because of the dropped calls. What do you think? Are you happy with your service & pricing? If you weren’t, would you know what to do about it? A couple of resources you might try would be the Consumers Union’s HearUsNow.org or the FCC web site’s directory or direct complaint form. Or if your complaint is specifically about the new iPhone antenna problem, you could try the solution below.
Hick Hop Hos Throw Down At The Hoedown
[ 2 Comments ]Posted on June 30, 2010 by admin in Music
Wednesday, June 30th, 2010In some magical realm between Kid Rock, Cowboy Troy, and Eminem, a megastar is waiting to be born.
 Bubba Sparxxx Hoggin’ The Mic |
It may never have occurred to you before just how much gangsta rap and bluegrass have in common. Well, okay. They really don’t have much. Which is why – in spite of a lot of obvious talent and decent production – a project like Gangstagrass
