March 31, 2009

Gothfeminant

Calling all teenage boys. Jump on the Vampirerotica bandwagon. You dress like this kid, and you're going to be set. To be clear, this is not Marilyn Manson goth. This is something I am calling, Gothfeminant. Yes, it includes make-up. But, trust me, it'll be worth it.
0 comments

March 30, 2009

Where are all the 2nd World Countries?

0 comments

March 27, 2009

Everything’s Fake

You know how people fear that Photoshop and video editing software are going alter real footage so drastically to make fake news appear to be real? I actually wonder if the opposite is going to occur. I wonder if we're just going to stop believing real news altogether, assuming that everything we see has been edited, because we know it can be.
0 comments

March 26, 2009

Chicago Parking Meter Problem

Drivers in Chicago are being ticketed for parking in front of inoperable parking meters, and some of the ones that are working have quadrupled their rates since Chicago Parking Meters LLC took over. The conclusion I hear? Privatization is bad. I agree. IF privatization simply means blindly handing over any governmental job to a non-governmental entity. This alone ignores the major benefits of privatization, which are competition and incentive-driven accountability. Neither are happening in this case. If Chicago Parking Meters LLC sucks, fire them and hire someone else. They obviously are either incompetent or have no incentive to do a good job. Unlike the privatization of highways, where the company tolls people for usage, and maintains the road to encourage use/tolls, this situation has no similar incentive. They're not in charge of the roadways. And honestly, I'm sure they weren't in charge of the rate hike either. They're simply in charge of meter maintenance. And if they suck, fire them.
0 comments

March 25, 2009

Liberty and Equal Insurance for All

Do you think you should pay the same amount of insurance on your land-locked home as someone who lives on the Ocean? With the much riskier premise of floods for the home with the more scenic view, this would be ridiculous, right? And yet, intrinsically, we don't like the idea of having someone with a riskier premise for sickness having to pay more for health insurance than us? Is it because that for many of these conditions, the party has no control over them? By the way, just to throw another wrench in the argument, the Fed DOES subsidize flood insurance for coastal owners.
0 comments

March 24, 2009

The Pro-Union Confederacy

The South WAS pro-Union. They recognized the benefits of a shared defense. Free trade. Strength in numbers. Hence the forming of the Union in the first place. They simply didn't think the benefits were worth the growing Federal intervention in what they believed were their constitutional rights as states.
0 comments

March 23, 2009

Except in the Cases of Rape and Incest…

This argument has always struck me as rather absurd. Either the life of the unborn child has human rights or it doesn't. Why would the circumstances of the conception have any influence on the value of the conceived?
0 comments

March 20, 2009

Random Friday Rant

It makes me angry that Two and a Half Men is popular.
0 comments

March 19, 2009

It’s a Sham!

So, my wife figured out how to make the most amazing Shamrock shakes I've ever had. Low fat ice-cream, skim milk, creme du menthe. Blended. As you can see, it really isn't that bad for you in terms of dessert. And that's the problem. It doesn't taste like it would be bad for you AT ALL. And I feel like having one every night! Here's why I think shamrock shakes create a false appearance of health. 1. They're green. Green things tend to be good for you 2. They're minty. Mint reminds you of dental hygiene. It's pure genius. You diabolical Irish.
0 comments

March 18, 2009

When in North Korea…

How do Kim-Jong Il and Fidel Castro do what they do? Most dictatorial rule is transferred every 10-20 years by guerilla groups who assassinate the head honcho and take over power, only to have their number two guy shoot them down the road. How are these guys so amazingly powerful? Not just with showering their populace with propaganda that keeps them in bondage? But in keeping their closer circle happy being just under the throne? It's incredibly impressive. And I have to admit that we could probably learn something from it, if we could figure it out.
0 comments