Canadians *are* American!

My mind has just been blown! Today I was talking to a guy from El Salvidor and he said something to the affect of "I am American, South American, but still" and just now it occurred to me Canadians and Mexicans and Colombians and Brazilians and Venezuelans and so on are *all* American. So if this is the case, why do we take the name so strongly as our own here in the *United States* of America? We are a union of states in the American continent along with dozens of other sovereign nations. So if this is the case when someone asks you what country you are from, America is not a legitimate answer. America is not a country, it is a continent. And on that continent are 48 states that chose to join together a form a federation. I haven't thought this all the way through yet, and I am sure I can go look up some information about it before making some grand gesture. Hmmm.....

Myanmar Junta

Since May 3rd, millions of citizens of Myanmar have been displaced by Cyclone Nargis tearing through their nation. Areas where homes and crops used to be our completely flooded, people deep in the Irrawaddy delta have been stuck with no help, no food, and no shelter for weeks now, and international aid is being offered but very slowly accepted by the junta. The military leaders of Myanmar are very suspicious of western interference. They have portrayed America to be it's enemy and don't want any of their citizens seeing America help in the aid, in fear that it would skew their evil depiction of us. However they are allowing some other Asians nations to help in the recovery, but in very insignificant ways, many times not even coming close to reaching the people who actually need help. As for the supplies and food that had been sent for survivors, it is sparse at best. Some have even gone far enough to say that high quality food sent from overseas, have been confiscated by the junta and replaces with lesser quality food. All of this and now the Junta is claiming that the international aid supplied to it thus far has not been enough. The 150 million donated to their recovery is just a bit shy of the *11 BILLION* they claim they need to repair after the cyclone. Are they fucking crazy?! That 11 billion would go straight in to their pockets. How could rebuilding shack villages cost anywhere near 11 billion? The leaders of Myanmar need to start using the aid we've already supplied and are trying to add on to, with much resistance on their side, to save the people of their country who are dying *right now*. Worry about future aid after you've actually attempted to use up whats available. Save your fucking countrymen for God's sake. It is getting to the point that if other nations do not break orders from the junta not to enter, and let these people die, that will be a humanitarian crime on everyone who didn't do anything to save them. It's been almost a month, get this done!

Katrina Victims

With recent natural disasters in China (quake), Myanmar (cyclone), and now Columbia (flood) it is pretty easy to be brought back to 3 years ago when one of the United States most famous towns was sunk underneath water for weeks. It seems however that most of America has forgotten about Katrina and it's victims, or at least put them to the back of their mind. While countries like Myanmar are being condemned for their slow and horrendous humanitarian aide, we should look at ourselves in the mirror before talking so badly about them. Katrina survivors are still living in trailers, most of which were built using a glue too high in formaldehyde, which has now caused many hundreds of children to be born with or grow up with debilitating asthma, those aforementioned trailers are within the next few weeks being taken away from the survivors, and any federal aid to get them housing or jobs is slow, if at all available. The houses that used to be in their neighborhood, going for $400 a month have been rebuilt by contractors who are now looking to charge above $1200 a month. These people can't afford that kind of rent, especially when jobs are nearly non existent, many of them don't have vehicles, and now they are being forced to leave the only place they have known as home since Katrina. We are creating THOUSANDS of jobless and homeless people out of citizens of our own nations. People who spent days on top of their roofs waiting to be rescued. Many times watching helicopters and boats speed right by them to go rescue the more affluent citizens. It disgusts me.

I wanna be a spy!

So apparently a 33 year old Chinese woman was just found guilty of aiding a Chinese spy who had illegally obtained documents regarding the amount of military backing the US is giving to Taiwan.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7424827.stm

I didn't realize we were still in the era of secret agents, it just seems so Cold War to me. But obviously they are still around. Just not mentioned or caught quite as much.

With raising tension between the US and Russia. And China now deepening their relationship with Russia, as well as Taiwan and even Iran! Things are looking bleak for America. If we don't get on track soon, and stop acting like we control the world, there is going to be quite a coalition of forces who want to take us down.

And our "coalition", you know the one we sent to Iraq. Oh wait, that's right it is almost 100 percent US troops in Iraq, so we have no coalition right now... oh well I guess we're on our own. That's what happens when you treat all your allies like shit. Freedom Fries anyone?

brb

I know it's been a little while, but I have been incredibly busy with a new job, kick off the summer partying, and a website I have been developing. My mind has been so stretched that I haven't particularly found anything concrete to blog about lately. I've been spread between keeping up to date on the disasters in China and Myanmar, learning about World War 1-2 and the Cold War for sections on my site, the Democratic Race coming to a close, the Mets stinking it up, my new job on Fire Island, and massive amounts of alcohol and weed. So with all of that said ,I'll brb, it may be a couple more days before something comes to me, but I swear this blog will only be getting better from here on in.

Freedom of Speech....or Legal Drugs?

The Netherlands is home to some of the most liberal minded, peace loving, hippies in the world. I mean come on Amsterdam is their most famous city. Drugs run abundant in cafes and on the streets, gays and other minorities are welcome, no one hates anyone, everyone is all lovey dovey and gets along fine.

Sounds like heaven right? Well for the most part yes, but check this out!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24665094/

A Dutch artist was arrested for writing cartoon strips that were negative towards certain people's, mostly extremist Christians and Muslims. He was indicted for "Hate speech". Are you kidding me?! Dozens of comic strips are published daily in America portraying our very own President as an idiot. Portraying businessmen, religious leaders, athletes, and any other person that happens to be in the spotlight, in whatever manner the artists feels necessary.

I mean I've always known one of our greatest freedoms was freedom of speech, but for some reason I just assumed other industrialized, democratic nations also guaranteed this freedom. The Netherlands being my favorite European nation and one that I have seriously considered some day relocating to, makes this news quite unpleasant for me.

Now I do assume that they protect freedom of speech, there is most likely a law on the books specifically for hate speech. So can I live without being able to send a little hate out towards those who deserve it? I think so!! Legal mushrooms and weed VS not being able to say some racists or derogatory comments every now and again, sounds good to me! It'll probably make me a better person, or something.

Myanmar Invasion

Here's an idea, instead of invading nations like Iraq, Iran or North Korea for their human rights violations, or at least claiming that is the reason, why don't we overthrow governments that truly deserve it. The Myanmar Military Junta that controls the country has not only responded to the cyclone that hit there on May 3rd slowly and without compassion, becoming responsible for thousands of deaths after the cyclones actual destruction, they have even kept supplies meant for survivors for themselves, taken more expensive supplies donated by other nations and replaced them with their own lesser quality goods, denied access to the country to many relief workers, and the relief they do allow in have been stuck in one of the lesser hurt cities, not even allowed to see or personally help the people who actually need it. If these aren't the actions of a government that needs to be overthrown I do not know what is. If America and it's allies were to go in there it would literally take days to defeat their meager military, and if we didn't try and impose our life style on the Myanmar people and actually did right by them, by getting them food, water, clothes and housing, they would love us! There would be no rebellion, we would look like heroes in the eyes of the world again, and we would have actually over thrown a government who rightfully deserves it. Just an idea...

Reviews from a Casual Gamer: GTA 4

GTA 4 has been reviewed as one of the greatest games of all time. It has made more money in one week than any other media release of all time. That means movies, CD's, DVD's, books, everything. All of that said here is what I think of it.

The cons:
Supporting characters (aka people on the street and driving) are sometimes too dumb. For instance, you walk in to someone, they say "Excuse me" you than proceed to shoot someone right in front of them, and instead of running they say "You're clumsy". There are many more similar situations that anyone who has played the game will have experienced.

One major disappointment for me was not being able to go up the Statue of Happiness. Nuff' said.

The pro's
This is where my title comes in. While many nay sayers will complain that the games graphic content is bad for children, I would like to claim the opposite is true. The obscenely realistic drug addicts and criminals I have seen in this game are disgusting, sickly, and many other undesirable traits. Any child playing this game will have it in their heads that meth heads are horrible people. It will last with them through there teenage years and when offered a drug they may remember back to GTA 4 and refuse it. While anyone who has already done drugs may play the game and not be turned off by them, since they already know the pitfalls but don't care, a child will see these characteristics with innocent eyes and be forever turned off by drugs. Just a thought.

My other pro is... everything else. The cars, the guns, being able to explore the entire city, the collision mechanics, the realistic and diverse responses from people when you bump in to them or rob them, the conversations while driving to missions, the radio stations in the car, EVERYTHING!

Two things I would like to see in future iterations of the game:

This is going to sound crazy but I want to be able to break in to houses, rob everything, kill the family inside, smear blood on the walls. Yeah it is disgusting and violent, but is it that much more violent than shooting someone through their windshield and having their brains splatter everywhere as their head falls to the horn and honks endlessly, or crashing in to innocent pedestrians and having the front of your car plastered with blood, or....any of the many many methods this game allows you to kill a person?

My second wish and hope is definitely further from reality. But I can't wait till the AI in the game is intelligent enough to respond to what you are actually saying. You tell them to duck, they duck, tell them to shut up they shut up. At first the characters will only be set to understand certain sayings, similar to how the DS can do with Brain Age and other games, but eventually the characters will be as lively as online gamers, and give an even more immerse gaming experience.

So there you have it, everything I have to say about GTA 4.

An open letter to George W Bush.

"We must be steadfast and we must be strong in the face of those who murder the innocent to achieve their objectives."~President George W Bush

Mr Bush, it is obvious while you spoke in Israel and made this statement that you were talking about Hezbollah and other enemies of our Jewish allies. However you might want to rethink the wording of your statements from now on. Seeing as how if we are going to be steadfast and strong against "those who murder the innocent to achieve their objectives" we're going to have to include the United States army in that list. Have you ever seen the number of civilian casualties in Sadr city, as well as many other Iraqi towns, that we have inflicted just to achieve our objective of ridding the city of a few rogue extremists? You my good sir, are a terrorist of the innocent and deserve a fate worse than death.

UE Attempts

Jesus believes in Aliens!

The Vatican makes me laugh SO hard. Do they think they're forward moving or something because they make public statements of approval about things that most of the world already knew?! Yesterday the Vatican said "it's ok to believe in aliens" LMAO!!!!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24598508/

I mean come on, it took them this long to say "Well if there is life out there somewhere, and you believe in it, don't worry you're not going to hell, oh but if you're gay, you're still damned to hell you freakin' faggot"

Christianity is a joke.

That being said, Jesus Christ was an incredible *person*, I just wish his followers actually followed what he had to say.

Tarot

SELF

The Sun in this position symbolizes a return to Eden, a return to your original nature. This is the card of the person who is expressing the highest creativity and doing her or his best work. Your motives, outlook and beliefs are all synchronized. There are no hidden motives, nagging doubts or fear of the outcome. Relax, look around and enjoy the wonderful view from the center of your universe.

SITUATION

When the Five of Swords is in this position, polarizing forces in your immediate environment may be jeopardizing the possibility of teamwork. Such forces could pit individuals against each other in a way that stops the greater flow of progress and mutual support. Help those around you to see beyond their petty differences.

This may require challenging them to look for the real causes of their bickering. Is there a chance that too much subjective thinking is undermining the group effort? This is not a favorable trend. If there's anything you can do to keep it from getting worse, it is up to you to make the attempt now.

CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES

When the Nine of Wands is in this position, the challenge is to resist the idea that you must swoop in and save the day. A person who instinctively leaps to heroics can fixate on the glory it will bring to the self, actually diminishing their capacity to serve the greater good. This is not to say you shouldn't do your personal best.

Sometimes we just need to stand back and let someone else have the glory, so we become better at sharing in and supporting others' accomplishments. There are usually enough challenging tasks to go around; it's not necessary for you to take the lead role in all of them.

FOUNDATION

The Tower in this position suggests that you have experienced a direct hit in this lifetime. Now it holds no terror for you; you know you can handle intense energy and sudden changes. Your resilience has been proven; you know how to pull yourself together after an explosion.

The knowledge that you can hold up under duress gives you courage and optimism. Now you can serve as a guide or support for others who are less confident or experienced.

RECENT PAST

With the Eight of Cups in this position, you may have been through a situation that left you feeling assaulted. You felt exhausted, overwhelmed, and drained -- as if a plug was pulled within you. Take heart because this card implies that difficult conditions are on the wane.

The worst of your sadness and feelings of being overwhelmed have lifted. But you have yet to collect yourself and move forward, which is what you must do in order to fully recover. Take special care to get closure on this episode. As the future brings new influences, you don't want to be dwelling on the past.

HIGHER POWER

When the King of Wands comes up in this position, a leadership role is being pressed on you from all sides and it's difficult to turn it down. When the collectivity needs a figurehead for motivation and nobody feels adequate to the job, accept the image and the role and let others' growing enthusiasm support you.

This is not the time to sidestep an opportunity. Relax and enjoy what may be a rare experience for you.

NEAR FUTURE

When the Ace of Wands is in this position, your choices are narrowing and coming into focus, allowing you to define what you really want to do and how you are going to accomplish it. Like water surging through a funnel, your energy needs to narrow down upon itself and penetrate to the core. Proceed with single-mindedness and concentration.

Your opportunity may be imminent, so get rested and organized. If you cannot act with full focus, you may not be able to do the work necessary to reach your objectives. Maintain a state of readiness and wellness about you.

INHIBITIONS

When the Eight of Swords falls in this position, you are being tested by your own criteria. If you have sown doubt, criticism and negativity in your environment, you will receive the same in return. This is only fair, and you know it.

Refrain from whining and blaming. You did what you did; you said what you said. Now the consequences are coming back around to you. Humble yourself and change your thinking. Perhaps in the future you will choose to cultivate more compassion and less confrontation in your relations. Let this experience inspire you to raise your level of sensitivity as you relate to others.

ALLIES

In this position, the King of Swords suggests that you seek the assistance of a mentor in communications. Find someone with enough broad experience to help you sharpen your logic, define the issues before you and refine your arguments. This person will be a strict but fair judge of your development. He or she will critique you and give you assignments for self-improvement.

It's like having a personal trainer, who will hold up the mirror and show you the parts of yourself that you cannot see without help. With this person on your side, you will improve your ability to stay on top of events and issues. Such helpers are worth their weight in gold; don't stray too far from her or his advice.

ADVICE

The Eight of Coins in this position recommends that you focus on your main project and produce as much as you can, while staying healthy. This is an important time for meeting goals. However, do not work so hard that quality suffers.

You are in a position where your effort can make a big difference. Apply yourself. Do the work and you will be rewarded with flexibility and freedom.

LONG TERM POTENTIAL

This card is traditionally entitled a Page, but in some modern decks as a Princess. In this position, this card suggests that you have the potential to contribute the most by remaining humble, keeping a low profile and being a catalyst who helps others improve communication.

You are not the overt agent of change; your unobtrusiveness leads others to think the good ideas were their own. When that happens, they lend passion to the ideas and are more easily roused to action. Unbeknownst to others, it is your leadership that is quietly at work.

Nuclear Proliferation

So everyone knows that Iran and North Korea have been working on nuclear power, and possibly nuclear weapons. But what I just learned today was that over 40 other nations are also on the brink of starting their own nuclear programs. Could you imagine a world where Namibia, South Africa, Argentina and Brazil had nuclear missiles. We were scared shitless during the Cold War when it was only us and Russia. The future where any third world nation or military dictatorship can have these weapons is a bleak one. Oh one positive note, Canada is one of the 40 nations, there's nothing to fear from Canada!

Volcano Lightning!!!

One of the coolest thing's I've ever seen

Gas Prices

I've decided that the moment gas breaks the $4 mark I am putting my bus in park and keeping it there for a while. I'm going to get my bicycle and ride that to work, friends houses, stores, and anywhere else I may need to go. Of course I will use the bus for the occasional road trip this summer, but it is not moving an inch to drive around randomly and to places that are easily walked or ridden to. Get some exercise, save some money, help rid out world of oil dependency, and re-experience my youth. I think it'll be good times.

The Ego

It is said that in order to find true enlightenment one must overcome their ego. However isn't the point of enlightenment to establish an understanding of the entire world inside and out to combine all aspects of life in to a unified whole? If that is the case, than isn't the ego part of that unified whole? Doesn't it have it's part to play in the perfect harmony of life? How can it be said that any aspect of the human sentience has to be abandoned in order to heighten another aspect of it? The ego is necessary to the physical, spiritual and mental development of all persons. However once again, the attributes of the ego, desire, plotting and striving must be toned down a bit. The ego should not be the entire forefront of the human personality. We should not put on a facade at every moment of social interaction. And that is what the ego is, a facade. An outer shell that confines our true being. We must learn to use the ego to our benefit, but to also lessen it's strangle hold over our perceptions of reality. Egos collide constantly, it is when we start using a deeper level of perception to interact with others that true understanding takes place.

Nuview

The goal of many eastern religions and philosophies is to remove desire, plotting and striving from our minds. However I have come to believe that it is not healthy to do so. Or at least not healthy to completely abandon these specifically human attributes. Without desire one would have no drive to live, without a certain level of plotting or planning one would have no future stability, and without striving one would not be able to achieve goals. I believe that it is necessary to lessen these character traits in yourself, lessen the things you desire, stop plotting out every single detail of life and don't strive so hard for one goal that you forget about everything else around you. Just like any human characteristic from love to greed there are negatives and positives that go along with them. As long as we learn to use desire, to plot accordingly and to strive properly we can live a productive happy life. If we have constant desire, overbearing plots, and demanding striving we will surely face the consequences of such actions.

A junkie won't bounce 'till he hits the ground.

While watching this video a thought occurred to me, the world is about the hit rock bottom. With sky high gas prices, environmental disasters, economic decline, and food shortages world wide, we're falling faster each day. Our addiction to oil, money and over consumption of food has lead us to this last stage before the bounce. It would be great if the world's population had the ability to fix problems before they became pandemic, but it is blatantly obvious that the our addictive personalities need to hit rock bottom before we find a solution for these problems. So IMO, I cannot wait for the continuation of war over power sources, mass starvation in third world countries, genocide in Tibet and Kosovo, the massive and more regular cyclones, tornado's, hurricane's, earth quakes and wild fires, and a new great depression. Because only in these massive world changing events will eco power, peace, democratic economic stability, clean air water and land, and adequate food production and consumption be possible. But who knows how long those positive changes will last until the next ebb and flow of misunderstanding our place in this world will occur.

Chiller Theatre

Sand Quarry

Father Divine

Quotes

I walk in noone's footsteps but my own.

I do not want or desire, I have and accept.

Be content alone and happy together.

Uber Geek

I am a proud self proclaimed geek, one who is more than willing to turn off the music while everyone is hanging out, playing pool and drinking, in order to put on Star Wars Episode 3! lol. I was in a mansion though, with a 70 some odd inch TV and not one but TWO surround sound systems attached to it. I saw Ep 3 on the coffee table and my geek instinct took over. I *needed* to watch it on this tv with this system! Within 10 minutes the room was cleared, everyone was upstairs or outside as I sat there watching Star Wars, more content than you can even imagine!

Nikola Tesla's Wardenclyffe Laboratories

Famous in Germany!