December 2007 Archives

The whole idea of Iowa's caucusing is a bit of a mystery to me.  At least until I read this: "Under Iowa's arcane caucus rules, candidates must receive support from 15 percent of the participants in each precinct to be viable. If not, their supporters can switch to other candidates." 

So it's the peer pressure model of elections.  Now I get it.

(source: Clinton leads in Iowa but Edwards gains)

""It's not because I don't like them," Huckabee said of gay people. "It's because I like even more the idea that the heart and soul, the essence of our civilization is in the family. It's not in the government. It's not even in some institution, not even the church....  When you mess with the design, you end up messing with results," he added."

First of all, as a candidate for president of a country where there are many types of families, I don't think you can discount an entire group of families and claim to represent all people.  There are over 13 million single parents out there, and Mr. H just claimed that those people are messing with their children.  I think those people will be thrilled to hear that.  Especially when there are studies that show just the opposite - that children of single parent households turn out to be just as well off as children of 2 parent households. 

And this BS about "not lik[ing] them..."  I don't care if you like me.  I just care if you deny me my rights as an American and as a person.  The essence of our civilization is the family, says Mr. H.  But he says that while applying a specific churches' beliefs and definition to what makes a family.  I've always liked the saying that love makes a family.  If your definition begets love for a specific structure, I may be so bold to say that you're focusing on the wrong thing.  

(sources: Huckabee explains antigay stances;  Facts About Single Parent Families; Metlife - Being a Single Parent)

Today Bush says: "My resolution for the New Year is this: to work with Congress to keep our economy growing, to keep your tax burden low, and to ensure that the money you send to Washington is spent wisely..."

What about the over $481 billion spent on the war in Iraq, and how much of that has been spent wisely?

(sources:  Bush signs child health program extension into law; NPP: Bringing Home the Federal Budget)

President Bush has said, "The best way to deal with this enemy is to defeat them overseas so we don't have to face them here at home..."  While I don't agree with this logic in its current implementation, I certainly hope no one tries to attack us here at home - especially not in the air.  Apparently our air defenses are stretched a bit thin at this point due to the fact that our F15s have been grounded, and "the F-16, is in high demand for Iraq operations." (MSNBC.com)  So for awhile the Canadians were neighborly enough to watch over Alaska for us.  And the California Air National Guard is watching the entire West Coast.  Perhaps we should have gotten more of those F22s up and going, because we've never been attacked via air before...

While the rhetoric about defeating folks abroad resounds with many, I think being able to protect our own country would be a high priority.  The fact that it seems to be compromised is disconcerting.

(sources: Grounded F-15s have U.S. searching for cover; Spread of Democracy Will Yield Peace, Bush Says)

My newest obsession: The Food Network.  Maybe now because it's in HD and the food looks better, or maybe I'm just more hungry lately - who knows?  I've been stuck watching it for an hour or so at a time, and then going to the website for recipes.  Bubby's meatloaf is delicious.

In the meantime, I've seen this commercial over and over for this little amplifying device that claims to make it possible to hear a TV on low volume from across the room, hear better in church, or even eavesdrop on your friends and neighbors.  For instance, they show this woman listening to her neighbor's private conversation across the street and this guy listening to some girls ogling him in the gym.  Yeah, he's buff, but he looks like a dork wearing this "listening device" and grinning like an idiot.  Just for fun I found some reviews on it - everyone says it's really a piece of crap.  My favorite was, "My advice is to get a cup with a string attached to another cup, and hold one cup to your ear. You would be better off."   Bummer, it makes julienne fries too...

Merry Christmas to me - I got a computer virus.  Yes, even though I practice safe computing wrapping my mouse in saran wrap and wear latex gloves at all times, something has infected my computer.  Several different scans have crashed, unable to purge the electronic herpes from my machine.  Thank goodness while I wait for yet another scan, I have the Food Network.  (and another computer)

You know this is bad karma for joking about the headline I did a few days ago...  Shame on me!

On the last shopping day before xmas, I always think it is somewhat amusing to watch people get all flustered over their last minute gifts.  You know, someone comes in the day before xmas and is upset that we don't have a Wii to sell them.  The best one this year, besides the lady who was surprised that we didn't carry cassettes, was a woman who wanted to buy a CD.  She didn't know the name of the artist, album, or even the song.  She was disturbed that I didn't know all the lyrics to all the CDs that we sell, and agitated then that she wouldn't be able to buy her CD.  Perhaps she might have wanted to start looking for that gift a little sooner...

Don't forget to start shopping for Valentine's Day now.  It's just around the corner!

I've noticed that at work it seems there are many open-minded people, and I was thinking about how grateful I am to live in the time that I do.  Granted its not a utopia for "the gays," but there are enough people out there who could care less if you're gay or not that life can resemble "normalcy."

Today I read the headline, "Gay Iraqis become targets after U.S. invasion of Iraq."  Wow, just another of the 101 ways we’ve made life better for the people of Iraq.  There’s a new report that apparently details the “…growing persecution, torture, and killing of Iraqi gays and lesbians.”  Well, at least WE don’t torture right?  Apparently in Iraq a high ranking religious leader said that LGBT people should be killed in the “most severe way.”  This makes me ill…

What makes me even more sick is that our country won’t do anything about it.  Hell, everyone over there is in danger so there’s little chance that a mini-holocaust would be avoided.  And with the current government, they won’t even try to protect LGBT people in our own country.  “The White House says there is no need for the [hate crimes] bill…”   No, just an 18% spike in anti-gay crimes in 2006.  No need.. 

And god forbid people like religious leaders wouldn’t be able to preach their hate so their followers will feel better about practicing hate.  A Bishop in the US said, “We believe that [the hate crimes bill] will criminalize our freedom of speech and our ability to preach the gospel.”  Well, that’s all the Grand Ayatollah was doing when he mentioned that gays should be killed in the worst possible way.  It’s all the same kind of rhetoric when you boil it down…


(sources: Gay Iraqis become targets after U.S. invasion of Iraq, White House threatens to veto hate-crimes bill, FBI: Hate crimes escalate 8% in 2006)

Look, only 3 more seats available at this deal breaking price!  What the hell is this?

I love when a customer starts out with, "Are you a manager?"  Something interesting always follows.

Tonight it was followed by someone who:
complained that my store is owned by a foreign company (it's not)
complained that my company is anti-Christmas (which explains the Christmas decorations)
complained that my company is anto-Christian (which explains the 15ft sign that says Merry Christmas)
complained that many similar companies support "alternative lifestyles" and he won't buy from Ford
complemented us on our hand driers in the restroom

Next time I'll just say I'm not a manager...  I made my tongue bleed.

"Canada's post office and police are trying to track down a "rogue elf" who wrote obscene letters to children on behalf of Santa Claus..."

Are there really rogue elves out there?  I would love to meet one someday.  Seriously, there are some bad, bad kids out there who probably deserve an obscene letter from Santa.  And no Wii either!

And speaking of kids who are bad, or will grow up to be bad..   Overheard at my store the other day:  A grandmother was walking around the store with her grandson singing to him in a lullaby voice.  How sweet we thought - until we heard what she was singing to him.  It was the theme song from COPS!  Although, I guess that's not much worse than singing to a child that their cradle will fall from a treetop...

(source:  Canada seeks author of nasty letters from Santa)

Well, duh.

The interesting thing is that the article states that the gene seems to be affected by a drug.  "The study tested the hypothesis by giving the bisexual fruit flies drugs that weakened their synapses. Within hours the flies engaged exclusively in heterosexual activity." (Yahoo News, 2007)  This raises the several decades old question: If you could be straight by taking a drug, would you?

Have you ever seen the TV show called "It Takes a Thief?"  I don't think new episodes are airing, but it's still on Discovery.  Anyway, when I first watched it the show freaked me out.  I couldn't believe how fast someone could take so much stuff!  So I thought at that point it might be good to add some security.  J installed a deadbolt.

Then the other day I saw in the local paper that a person just down the street had a $3000 plasma TV stolen from his house.  So now I'm obsessing and I spent the evening looking at home security systems.  Lots of options out there.  I also found some lovely home inventory software.  Now I'm getting crazy about this.  Window and door sensors, motion detectors, cameras, ball busters, and electronic guillotines.  Our home will be like Fort Knox by the time I'm done.

We don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change. - from my fortune cookie

I knew that already..   Melissa Etheridge once sang that the only thing that stays the same is change.  So true...

What is it with turds at work?  No, I'm not talking about customers - I mean real turds.  Tonight I'm walking down an aisle and I see two brown spots at the end of the aisle.  Unbelieving, I called over a coworker and asked what they were.  She looked down the aisle in horror.  No, this can't be, I thought to myself.  They must be chocolate bars, or maybe a truffle of some sort.  No, they weren't truffles, unless they were pooed by royalty.  And I somehow doubt that.

Upon learning of this turdly tale, another coworker told me about a lady who used to come into a store he worked at, and would poo all about the store.  Dear lord, what is wrong with people?  I don't care to use public restrooms unless absolutely necessary.  What would make someone want to poo in public?

On second thought, I don't want to know.

"The allegations against the Rev. Ted Haggard and Sen. Larry Craig have a common thread: A 50-year-old former prostitute from Denver named Mike Jones claims he had sex with both."

Ew..  One would be bad enough.   Why though would someone want to do both of them?  No accounting for taste there...

(source: Former male prostitute links two high-profile sex scandals)

A sign of the apocalypse..  Our water heater had begun to leak and so a plumber arrived to assess the situation.  Alas, we will need a new one, but it is covered under warranty!  When was the last time that kind of thing happened?  Whenever something breaks, it's always a few days after the warranty expires - even an extended one.  Maybe we should play the lottery?

I was playing around on MySpace tonight which I very rarely do, but I somehow stumbled upon an ex's page.  In his profile, it says that his "risk of cheating is zero... You would never break a commitment."  Funny how times change...

This new thing will be all the rage at next year's Pride Parade I'm sure!

(source: AFP/File/P. Parks)

My mom sent this link to me so I gave it a try.  I accurately predicted who it would come up with...

"Dennis Kucinich shares a 93% similarity with your beliefs"
Oh dear, does that mean I've seen an alien too?  Give it a try if you have spare time:  Glassbooth

This weekend at work has been a bit crazy.  It started off with someone pooping themselves, leaving the poopy drawers in the restroom, and beyond that it seems he shook himself off causing poop to go all over.  Then I had the lady who was so intensely rude that I could barely contain myself.  You know how people smile when they are purposely being rude and it makes you want to scream?  Two 4am shifts this weekend caused a bit of brain damage, but not more than the usual.  The weekend rounded out with a person who wanted to be an employee imposter, wearing the uniform and all.  Oh, and I got a resume from someone named "Crazy."  Pass...

Tonight J and I played Super Mario Galaxy on the Wii for the first time.  I have never really been that into video games, and I thought we'd play for a little while and then I'd get tired of it.  Instead we ended up playing for almost 2 hours!  Awesome game.  Just takes some getting used to with the 3-D and the upside down stuff.  But then again that's not too far off from real life now is it?

"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New federal numbers put the number of Americans infected with the AIDS virus each year close to 50 percent higher than previous estimates, activist groups and some media reported, but federal officials denied on Sunday that the data was finished yet."

Of course the data isn't finished yet - the White House isn't done white washing the report...

(source: No AIDS estimate available yet: CDC)