Monday, May 31, 2010

CHECK YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

I remember a TV commercial of yesteryear showing a native American Indian near a freeway, with tears welling-up seeing the exhaust from cars and the litter by the side of the road. I had the same feeling that as I had recently watching Sarah McLachlan doing the tear jerking ASPCA commercial. We care about America as long as it doesn't impact our lifestyle.

I watch cars near a busy intersection. Still tons of trucks, SUVs with a driver and no passengers. I don't know how many square meters Costco allocates for bottled water. There are lots of cars in the diamond lane but almost half have are cheating with only one occupant.

Ms. Christie Aschwanden wrote an article about the carbon footprint of air travel. It was published by Mother Jones. It is both stirring and articulate. It is a reminder that some will sacrifice for the common cause. I haven't been in a plane in 15 years and don't intend to. My home is significantly green. I guess I don't mind peeing weeing uphill because that's what a single person's effort feels like.

Yet, there are some 50% of the people who find it more convenient to deny global warming. I guess they all vote Republican.

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Friday, May 21, 2010

Asking a Supreme Court Candidate if they are Gay

Being gay does not form any more a set of beliefs than being white, being Jewish, or being of mixed ethnicity. That is the core premise Glenn Greenwald of Salon used today make this a legitimate question. However, if the core premise is wrong, what follows is tainted logic. There are gay conservatives, Republicans, Progressives and Liberals who come from normal and abnormal families. Being gay does not give a clue.

Asking a person if they are gay, even as a Supreme's candidate would not be an issue if the stupid religions did not call gay people abominations. If the Mormon Church did not have hissy fits about gay rights, if the right wing nuts did not rail about gays.

Asking this question just gives the prejudice, bigots, discriminators fodder for the fires of hate.

As well, there is a defacto tie to the question of being gay and the imagery of what gay people do sexually. In our society, it panders to the prurient interest. Nice try Greenwald but no cigar.

When people accept that being gay or bisexual is a gift and not an abomination, it will be perfectly acceptable to ask.

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IS RAND PAUL A RACIST

I really believe that the article by Joan Walsh in the May 21, 2010 Salon, may start a different dialogue on the candidate Rand Paul. It seems that he is a stereotype poster boy for the ultra right Tea Party mentality of keeping government out of anything that has to do with private lives, private enterprise.

It follows that, according to Rand Paul, government can make rules concerning government property, protection of the citizens, dealing with other countries, military, but not private business.

This is the core belief of Rand Paul. The fact that what flows from this is the enormous potential for prejudice and discrimination in housing, the workplace, retail businesses. This is not just against black people but anyone for any reason.

No, we do not need all social outcomes to be total equality and that is what our 3 branches of government decide. But, America is better than allowing rank discrimination in the hands of a landlord, a retailer, a private university, etc. It is our moral standing that has bode us well not just in the U.S., but worldwide. The core belief of Rand Paul, would create an environment that promotes, hate, discrimination and prejudice. America does not need to revert back 60 years and beyond, it does not need a Rand Paul because it does not need defacto discrimination.

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Monday, May 10, 2010

THE OLD COPY MACHINE

I was reading and listening to a CBS News report telling that almost all copy machines from 2002 on have a built-in hard drive that keeps a digital record of all copies, all scans and all faxes. On many machines, there could be 20,000 records.

When you sell the machine, or have it picked up for recycling, trade it in, the hard drive can be read by anyone with software available for free on the Internet. So, if you are a government organization, or a doctor, a bank, a shrink, a lawyer (oh sorry), a business with sensitive data like employee records... oh you get the idea, this would be a field day for naughty people. And if a famous Madame sold her copier, how many famous people would get the Tiger syndrome. Of course, not me.

I think there should be a facility required on all of these machines that have hard drives for the user to be able to clear the drive using a code.

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Monday, May 3, 2010

CONAN SEEMED LIKE A CRY BABY

Last evening, May 2, 2010, 60 Minutes interviewed Conan with most of the time spent on his losing his Tonight Show slot, Jay Leno leaving the 10 PM slot and accepting the Tonight Show once again. I viewed the some 20 minute interview.

I felt ashamed that Conan's body language and innuendo seemed to blame everyone but himself. I watched Conan, from time to time, with an open mind, and found him to not be funny nor interesting enough for my taste. Perhaps young people like his slap stick humor, but I think it is not funny or sophisticated enough. Conan tried to change something that worked. That something is the Carson or Leno style. I think he should have adopted some of this rather than being just his unfunny self.

Conan complained that 6 months was not an adequate test. I know that six months is not the longest test in the world, but I really don't think that something that doesn't work is going to start getting better simply as a function of time. If Conan were hilarious, probably he'd still have the Tonight Show and Jay would have to struggle to improve the 10 PM slot.

As an aside; Leno could do well with leaving Toyota alone as he has exhausted that humor to the point of boredom, but in balance, I'd pick Leno for the 11:35 time slot any day.

As to Leno acting honorably. I just think show business is about ratings, money, audience, management, and humor. it is grossly childish to think this is a buddy system. I don't think Leno is either honorable or otherwise. He did the right thing for himself and his employers by taking the Tonight Show back.

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