web-land

We Are Parents...

2011-04-19T19:40:00.000-07:00

... of a few baby birds that have made their home in our garage. Oh! You thought our human baby had been born? Gosh, I can see how the title may be misleading.

A few weeks ago a bird had gotten in our garage. We left the door open, but never saw it fly out. Apparently she was in the process of building a nest in the part of our garage where the roof meets the wall. It's a pretty safe place, but I am worried that she will not be able to feed the babies very well when the garage door is shut. She bolts through the door as soon as it opens. If she does manage to keep the babies healthy, I hope the garage is a big enough area for them to learn to fly. I can't really keep my garage door open for flight lessons. I will keep everyone posted on the bird situation.

We just went to infant CPR class. It was a pretty short class (about 45 minutes). We watched a video and used special baby dolls to try out our techniques. One thing about the video... here is a still image:

Yes, apparently if a meteoric Armageddon is raining fire from the heavens, you can save your baby with CPR (also a helmet of hair, seriously, it didn't move the whole time). I know that if the Decepticons invade the planet from outer space, I can protect my son from choking hazards (I seem to remember Decpticons and Autobots both being choking hazards actually). Why on Earth did the people that made this video choose this background? I know lasers are popular for backgrounds, but fiery rocks from the sky sent to smote the wicked? That is a little over the top for me.

On a serious note...

Also, recently a young man, one year younger than I am, was killed in Afghanistan. His name is Staff Sargent Jason Rogers and he was from Brandon, MS. A hateful church, whose name will never be mentioned by me, protested his funeral. A group called the Patriot Guard Riders, put themselves between the protesters and Sgt. Rogers's grieving family and loved ones. They do this all over the country with no charge to the families. Their creed is "Standing for those who stood for us." With gas prices the way they are and no end in sight to the protests or fallen soldiers, if you have the means and the opportunity go to their website and see if you can help them. I have not been contacted by this group, and I don't know any of its members, but I think their cause is noble.

-J

Government Shutdown

2011-04-06T19:42:00.001-07:00

As I work for the United States, people around the office have been buzzing about what they planned to do if there is a shut down. Some people will be knitting, others will be doing yard work, and so on. I have been asked what I plan to do during the shutdown. I proudly state that I will be a malcontent. Here is an example: I do not agree with the potential riders the Republicans plan to add to any budget. While the EPA may need changes and I certainly am supportive of elimiating tax money to pay for abortions, those issues do not belong in a budget. They are always tacked on though, by both parties, but have no business being part of the budget. However, while I certainly don't think the Republicans are not acting right, the blame for this budget situation falls completely on the Democratic party. But, it takes two to tango right? Yeah, it does now, but a year ago, when this buget should have been passed, it didn't. For all of 2010, the Democrats had control of the Senate, the House, and the Presidency. Therefore, the Democrats had every opportunity to pass a budget, but they did not. So, don't act like there is anyone to blame for us being in this situation other than the Democrats themselves. Chuck Schumer blames the Tea Party Republicans for holding up the process, but the Tea Party Candidtates did not even come into office until January 2011. That is four months after the Fiscal year started! Why didn't the Democrats actually do what they were supposed to and pass a budget before the Fiscal Year began? It is because they are cowards. Don't get me wrong. As a general rule of thumb politicians care more about getting elected than they do about actually doing their jobs. There are some who put their jobs first, but they are the exception, not the rule, in both parties. The wind of change last election cycle was palatable. Democrats knew that a wave of smaller government, fiscal responsibility, and social conservatism was growing bigger. Democrats, for being associated with the abomination that is Nancy Pelosi, were "in their sights" (to steal a line from the near equally offensive Sarah Palin). No matter how blue the dog, Democrats knew that big D would be a big problem. But, if they showed some sense, they would obviously lose their hardcore left base. So, they simply did nothing. Take a look at this entry from four years ago. After four years with the reigns of government, the Democrats, still haven't done anything, unless you count paying a lot of foreign banks a bunch of money and passing a disgusting healthcare law. You see all kinds of potential budgets coming from the House, but there has not been one continuing resolution, or full budget that has come from the Senate. Both parties love to point the finger at one another, but at least the Republicans are putting something out there. The Democrats seem to have given up on taxing, but they are still the party of bitching. Neither party is doing the right thing now, but we would not even have gotten to this point if the Democrats had done anything at all in 2010. -J ***Correction: my political information officer has informed me that budgets must orginate in the House. Still, at that time there we no ideas even coming out of the Senate, nor was their any Senate attempt to work up the budget sent by the House. As such, my point remains.

The order is rapidly fadin

2011-03-01T19:28:00.000-08:00

In 8th grade I had a science teacher that was a bit peculiar. One day in class he got on to a kid that was one of my friends. It was a minor issue. However, it became a major issue when my friend replied to the teacher and called him buddy. This sent the teacher into a rampage. He yelled, "I am not your buddy, I am your teacher. Do not dare call me your buddy." He then promptly sent the student to the office while the rest of the class sat there stunned.

I kinda had a "I am not your buddy" moment last week. Momar Gadhafi has been a pain in the United States's collective rear end for my entire life time. Recently, he declared Lybia would no longer pursue WMDs and would help apprehend Al Queda. Because of this, western nations, especially the U.S. moved to normalize relations with Lybia. Recently, the people of Lybia realized they had grown beyond his command. When the U.S. made it know that using foreign mercenaries to kill unarmed civilians should not occur, Gadhafi expressed his feeling that he had been "betrayed" by the United States. My response to that, more harshly than the teacher above,was F*ck you! Who does this guy think he is? He is not our buddy. He was directly responsible for blowing up an airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland and blowing up a disco in Germany, all in an attempt to kill American and other western civilians. And we betrayed him? the gall this guy has. Turns out, he is probably crazy. He is not even a funny crazy dictator like Kim Jong Il. Still, he makes me sick. Fortunately, I think Lybia has passed the tipping point and his days are numbered. As revolution and popular uprising spreads across the Middle East and Northern Africa, we should see more of this. For the times, they are a changin.

-J

Some thoughts

2011-02-09T18:55:00.000-08:00

Robert Johnson has been widely regarded as one of the greatest blues musicians of all time. He is said to have sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads to receive his talent. When I think of Robert Johnson, I think of someone who lived almost in antiquity. What I find interesting is that he was born in May 1911. That means that Ronald Reagan was actually older than him. For some reason, to me, that is strange to think of. I can remember Ronald Reagan as President, as well as his passing. He is probably more popular across the board today than he ever was when he was alive. So for someone so current to be actually older than someone so ancient is neat, I guess.

Lean Cuisine has a commercial out now for some kind of chicken stir fry dish. One of the selling points is that it has "farm raised broccoli." How is that a selling point? Where else does broccoli come from? Does the Green Giant mowdown herd after herd of innocent free roaming broccoli? I wish George Carlin was still alive, I think he would have a field day with that one.

That's all for now.

-J

The world in which we live

2011-01-14T19:32:00.000-08:00

The cost of a barrel of oil has gone up to $100 and OPEC refuses to budge on supply. Therefore, while a number of nations are experiencing a slow recovery from the recent "recession" high gas prices threaten to derail any recent gains.

A congresswoman wanted her constituents to feel like they were playing a part in their government and held a series of events in her district. While holding one such event, she was shot in the head and a number of people were killed including a Federal Judge and a nine-year-old girl.

The Russians are already saying they will back out of the recently announced START treaty if they feel threatened.

But what has been the biggest news of all this week? What story has turned the Internet on it's head? The zodiac signs may be off by a month and a 13th one has been added. People are freaking out about it. It turns out the whole thing may not even apply to western astrology. Further, it is without question, it doesn't really matter anyway. But that was the biggest news story this week. Seems like priorities may be askew.

-J

Hold me closer...

2010-12-05T19:31:00.000-08:00

While waiting in a hospital waiting room on Friday night, a kid, not respecting the gravity of being in a hospital, began acting up. Finally, after watching him carry on for about thirty minutes, I decided with actions come consequences. This consequence comes in the form of a video I made with my Blackberry. Enjoy!

-J

Good Old Fashioned Rant

2010-11-30T19:38:00.000-08:00

Before you read this in the interest of full disclosure, I am an employee of the United States Government. I can't figure out how to change the time it says I posted a blog entry, but it is currently 9:40 PM central time. I am writing this on my home computer on my own time.

This week President Obama announced to trim the defecit, he planned to freeze the salaries of all employees within the civil service (antiquated term). Below you will find some informational sources:
White House press release
WSJ article
Washington Post Article

The plan is expected to save $28 billion over the next five years. That is a near unfathomable amount of money for anyone other than an economist or billionaire. That is what the President is relying on. Yeah $28 billion sounds like a lot of money. It is. $5.4 billion, the approximate average yearly savings, is also a huge amount of money. But the problem is the budget deficit this year alone was $1.3 trillion. Because math makes my head hurt lets just do some estimates and say the pay freeze will save $30 billion over the next five years. That means that the entire savings is only 2% of the yearly deficit. The $5.4 billion per year is only .4% of the FY2010 deficit (these numbers come from the Congressional Budget Office). But every little bit helps right?

According to Federaljobs.net, the US Government is the nation's largest employer employing approximately 2% of the working men and women in the United States. Let's not forget, these employees are the ones that you file income taxes with, you get social security from, protect our borders, treat our veterans, and perform many other tasks we take for granted. So to save .4% the plan is to essentially cut the salaries of a full 2% of the workforce? What a great idea! Also, if you think that person at the IRS or the Social Security office was a pain to deal with before, how do you think they will act when they know they will not be getting a cost of living adjustment? That is likely what this will affect, by the way. If the President really wanted to minimize the punishment of Federal Employees and save some money, he would have done this for the last two years when inflation was stagnent. In that case the COLA really was just a raise. But it is meant to keep salaries consistent in the face of inflation. With inflation creeping back into the economy, not having the COLA would make the effective salary of each employee lower.

Of course the first sentence of the White House press release blames the past administration for the deficit. There is no question the Bush government could have been more fiscally conservative, but does the President not remember the ARRA or the health bill that nobody wanted and less people read? I guess those didn't add any spending. I know what they did add- extended benefits for people who are unemployed. Intelligent people may disagree over whether this provision was proper. However, everyone should be outraged by the message sent. Unemployed people should be given benefits but let's cut raises for Federal WORKERS. Now, the President did note the first salaries he froze were for Senior White House staff. Logically, this would have been an irrelevant publicity stunt. If it was one of the first things he did, that would mean his senior staff had just started their jobs. So, why would they get raises? You don't hire someone and immediately give them a raise.

So, that brings me to the actual point of this blog entry. I think the President needs to be rewarded (see you thought this was meant negatively! shame!). He already won the Nobel Peace Prize so, his next awards would have to be of equal or higher esteem. First, because the President managed to get the ARRA and Obamacare passed with apparently spending no money, I think he should be awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics (its a shame he missed it this ear). Now, by freezing the salaries of his senior staff, he really jumped on a grenade for all of us. Also, let's not forget, as Commander-in-Chief, he is technically in the military. Therefore, I propose he give himself the Medal of Honor. Who's with me!?!

-J

Who doesn't love company?

2010-11-16T19:12:00.000-08:00

I am sure it would be easy to find an answer to the above question. But I know for sure who does love company- Misery. Yes, less than one week after I make fun of the Cowboys, my Redskins get absolutely embarrassed by the much hated Eagles. I hope Dan Snyder picked up the phone today and called Sammy Baugh, Art Monk, Darrell Green, Joe Theismann, Riggo, Doug Williams, and Russ Grimm to apologize because what happened this week was an insult to everyone who has ever worn the uniform and every fan. It's not just that the Eagles gutter-stomped the Skins, it's McNabb. Why would Philly trade their franchise QB to the Redskins? Did the Cowboys try to trade Miles Austin to the Giants? Have the Giants tried to trade Brandon Jacobs to the Eagles? No. Why because they still are of some use. Jacobs has fallen far out of favor, but he is still worth too much to trade in the Division. So the Skins screwed up by trading for him. Then they give him a 4 year $78M deal on Monday. That night he comes out and plays just like someone that you would be willing to trade in the division. He threw the ball too high which is the worst place to put it. If it goes too low, I don't think the grass is gonna run the interception back for six. I want to give Shannahan a shot. But I think he needs to fire his son as well as Haslett. The Redskins are an absolute failure and an embarrassment. I don't think we can expect any better as long as Snyder owns the team. I (unfortunately) still can hope. Luckily the Cowboys are pretty embarrassing as well (although they even looked better last week).

-J

Broke Back Dome

2010-11-09T19:20:00.000-08:00

As anyone who knows me very well at all has probably suspected, I am reveling in the unraveling going on in the "Big D." Like those two famous cowboys that found love in one another (actually, I think they were goatboys not cowboys), Jerry Jones has created a story nobody in Texas wants to watch. Frankly, I can't quit it. The most recent wrinkle is that Jerry Jones fired head coach Wade Phillips. I hadn't thought about it, but someone mentioned the interesting statistic on the radio that Jerry Jones has fired every coach the Cowboys had ever had. The only disappointment in this whole thing is that Wade got fired. Nothing pleased me more to see the Cowboys act woefully inadequately on the field to have the camera cut to Wade with that "Aww shucks" or that "Where am I?" look on his face.

Speaking of Wade... has anyone ever seen him and Bob's Big Boy in the same place at the same time?

I think I have made my point.

The best part about this whole thing is that the Cowboys began the season talking about how they were gonna be the first team to play the Superbowl at home in Jerry World. The way it looks now, the only Cowboy employees that will be working the Superbowl will be janitorial staff. The NFL always puts their best officials out for the Superbowl. With all of the crap the Cowboys have been putting on the field this season those janitors will have had enough practice to be an all-star crew by then as well. If only this same type of thing could happen to the Giants as well. Unfortunately there is another team ripe for this type of fall with a demagogue owner. Sadly, that owner is Daniel Snyder. To be fair, at least Jerry has won some Superbowls, while the Daniel Snyder Redskins have been the model of consistent mediocrity. At least we can bask in the current work of art that is Broke Back Dome.

-J

Nick Bell

2010-11-02T19:38:00.001-07:00

About a month ago, I did not know who Nick Bell was. I am not one of those people with encyclopedic knowledge of lineups. Today, I find myself profoundly affected by the short life of this young man.

Of course the way I got to know Nick Bell's name was because of his surgery at Vanderbilt a few weeks ago. Brain tumor removed. I was concerned then. The thought that skin cancer could become a brain tumor sounded bad. The surgery was initially a success. Then very suddenly, over the last three days, Nick's condition deteriorated, and he died this afternoon.

After Nick's initial surgery his doctors came out and said that they were hopeful that one day Nick could again play football. I was very excited to hear this news. Nick had taken over a starting role on the defensive line as a sophomore. Nick coming back to football would be great for MSU. I wouldn't hold it against any fan for thinking that way. In any other case, that may have been how I would have felt. But that is not why I was excited. In this instance, even though I had never met the kid, I was excited because he was going to have a second chance to fulfill what was surely his dream - to play football. The reason its exciting to think of a sophomore good enough to start on an SEC defensive line for the fans, is because it shows talent. From the prospective of the player chasing his dream, this is exciting because it shows him he has the potential to actually make his own dreams come true. So, in that sense, I was genuinely excited he may be able to resume his football career so that he could have another chance to accomplish his goals.

This was buoyed by seeing Nick on the side line during the UAB game. Nick stood on the sidelines talking to his teammates and rooting them on. He had on his jersey with a camouflage cap and pants. He looked every bit the physical specimen you would expect an SEC defensive end to be. The model of health there in good spirits. MSU won the game. The cowbells rang with impermissible abandon. It was all of the pageantry and fuss of homecoming. In short, knowing that was the last game Nick could spend with his teammates, and us, it was perfect.

That was 10 days ago.

Yesterday afternoon when the news came out that Nick had taken a turn for the worse and the team was going to go to Birmingham to see him, I hoped for the best, but figured the worst. Skin cancer is generally on the skin, not the brain. For it to have gotten there, it was likely other places. Indeed, that seems to be the case. Now he is gone, and I never got to meet him, but have been greatly affected by his passing.

First of all, the second chance he got that was then taken away from him. Nick from all accounts I have heard was a hard worker who did not get into trouble and had a team first, not me first, attitude. But his second chance was stripped from him. It made me immediately think of Chris Rainey. Chris Rainey threatened to kill his girlfriend and was suspended from the team at Florida. He has now been welcomed back to the team. Jeremiah Massoli got kicked off the team at Oregon for breaking a number of laws, now he is spending his final year of eligibility intended to be Ole Miss's savior this year. To be fair, it also made me think of Anthony Dixon who got hopped up on Andre and drove around in a parking lot right before his senior year. All those guys got second chances. But not Nick.

The song Mad World as performed by Adam Lambert on American Idol has been playing in my head. It kinda fits my mood today.

Mississippi State students got together at 7:36 tonight to celebrate Nick. Seven wins for number 36. In true MSU form, they rang their cowbells for him. His family at Mississippi State will not know the heartache of his football family. He had been with them for three years (he was a redshirt sophomore). Intense heat in camp and intense games on Saturdays no doubt contribute to an intense bond. But even more than that, Nick's mother, Linda Bell, has lost her light. So far down the list am I yet so intense my reflection, I cannot fathom what is going through her mind right now. I hope, at this point, she is just numb.

When you lead the life I have led you get the full range of perspectives. When you are a kid you see these men playing on Saturdays. They look like giants (some of them still do) and are awe inspiring. You get to high school college age, and you see them as peers more or less. Generally, you know somebody that is playing football for your high school or college. Then you get older, approaching the middle section of your life and they change again. Now they are definitely kids. They are kids that are full of talent and promise. They can still be heroes but we now live more vicariously through their actions.

Nick Bell was a kid with promise to me. He never got to fulfill that promise. He was taken so young and so quickly. Ten days ago though, he stood on that sideline with his teammates. He heard the crowd cheering his team on. He was not playing but he was part of the team. For that period he got again to taste a sliver of his dream. And I was part of helping him do that. I will be forever thankful to Nick to have been given that opportunity.

-J

Crimes against humanity

2010-10-02T19:45:00.001-07:00

By definition it's something so heinous, just doing it constitutes a crime against not only the direct victim, but also against humanity as a whole. In a way, it is worse than war crimes because at least war crimes denotes belligerent nations are involved. War crimes would be torturing POWs or firebombing a village. Crimes against humanity would be the way Nazis treated the Jews or 9/11. Crimes against humanity are generally recognized by most people as evil. Generally, I do not think the United States engages in such. Do we torture terrorists? Likely, even if we don't, we are at least complicit in letting our allies do it. Do we attack from afar with soul-less killing drones? Yep. But until this story, I did not think the United States should be prosecuted for these type tactics. I still do not think we should for the drones or for torturing terrorists. However, I believe if anyone is still around that was responsible for infecting Guatemalans with syphilis, I think they should go on trial for crimes against humanity. I find this story to be absolutely disturbing. I cannot believe our government did it. Even though it seems as if authorities in central America were ok with it, if not participatory, this should not go unpunished.

-J

Only in England

2010-09-30T19:50:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has read through the genesis of this blog knows that it started out to record our time in England. Truthfully, it seems like those days were only a dream. I loved the time we spent there. In many ways their culture is just like ours. After all our nation was founded based on the promise of the Magna Carta recognizing that governmental legitimacy does not come from the top down but rises up from the people. And, they have buffalo wings! But some things are still very different. Take this story from the BBC.

The guy dies because drank a pint of vodka in four seconds and the coroner rules his cause of death is misadventure! When I think of misadventure the image that pops into my mind is actually English. It's of the Pythons in the Holy Grail prancing about the country side dressed as knights with men banging coconuts together. It's not a human being dying in a puddle of his own regurgitated blood after consuming too much alcohol in too short a time.

It kinda reminds me of a news story we heard one weekend while we were there (we only had TV when we were in hotels visiting other towns). Guns are basically outlawed over there so criminals have to be more industrious. A serial car jacker was operating on the motorways (our equivalent of interstates) using a large piece of lumber to threaten people to leave their cars. In the US, especially in the south, that would never have worked. He would have been shot long before he got away with a car.

So close yet so far away.

-J

I'm still here

2010-09-22T19:31:00.000-07:00

I don't really have much to say, but I thought it was about time for another entry so enjoy some random thoughts.

The older I get, the more I have come to appreciate Supertramp and Steely Dan. It's Raining Again has become one of my favorite songs. I also downloaded a Robert Johnson Album off of itunes. It is easy to write him off as an early influence and not really listen to his music, but he was amazing. If he sold his soul to the devil to make that music, I still think he came out ahead.

Fall is probably my favorite time of the year. How do we know when its fall? The leaves change? No. The weather gets cooler? Have you been outside? Football season starts? No, but you are getting warmer. The answer is: Pumpkin Spice Latte is back at Starbucks. Generally, I try to go to CUPS or Seattle Drip to support my local coffe house. But, I wait every year for fall to roll around so I can get this seasonal treat. It's like a McRib for people that can read, it only comes once in a while so enjoy it while you can. I have already had one. Just as good as I remember. It goes well with changing leaves, cool weather, and football.

Recently it has been announced that Anna Nicole Smith took about 1,500 pills per month. I know that is a lot but why? Not why did she take the pills, but why does anyone care? It would be one thing if it were a cautionary tale. If Lindsay Lohan would pay attention to the story of Robert Downey, Jr. maybe she will become a star again. But how could Anna Nicole's story apply to anyone. Will there ever be another white trash bleach blonde idiot that becomes famous for being in Playboy and looking (kinda) like Marylin Monroe who models Guess jeans, marries a hundred year old oil tycoon, has a baby with somebody (jury is still out on the dad) and overdoses? It's hard to figure on that repeating itself. So like a post I wrote a couple of years ago about Princess Diana, we should just leave Anna Nicole alone.

Thats all I've got.

-J

Mosque and State

2010-08-16T19:20:00.000-07:00

There has been some recent news (actually for a while now) regarding the building of a mosque near Ground Zero. A very vocal group of people think the President should step in and do something to stop it. He has said he will not do so. In this case, I think he is right... for all the wrong reasons.

Don't get me wrong, the reasons he has espoused are correct. He first said it was New York's decision. This is true. Zoning is and always has been, with some exception, the right of a state passed down to municipalities. Of course, the other problem with the President intervening in this type of matter is that it would be a clear violation of the separation of church and state.

The problem is the President is only using the states' rights and church and state issue when it pleases him. To be fair, both parties do this fairly consistently. That is one of my biggest problems with both political parties. But did Obama care about states' rights when he forced a healthcare plan down our throats? Did he care about the separation of church and state when he had a Ramadan feast? No. He is duplicitous.

Should the people that bought the property be allowed to build whatever they want there? As long as it is not a violation the answer is clearly yes. New York has already approved the plan. After all, isn't what makes our country great that we allow people to worship as they please, where they please?

-J

In-flight magazine cover stories?

2010-08-10T19:27:00.000-07:00

In the last two days there have been two pretty big news stories regarding airplanes. I will discuss them in reverse order.

Last night a small private airplane crashed into a mountain killing 5 of the 9 people on board including Sen. Ted Stevens. One of the four who survived was ex-NASA head Sean O'Keefe. Apparently, small plane crashes are not uncommon in Alaska as many areas are inaccessible by road and the weather is often bad. I guess the frequency with which bush pilots are used should not surprise me as I enjoyed Northern Exposure. Senator Stevens's first wife died in a similar manner. He of course, was disgraced and lost his seat after having been found guilty in a corruption trial (the verdict was later thrown out due to prosecutorial misconduct). But, for many years he was one of the most respected men in his state and in the US as a whole.

The second of the two, which came first chronologically, was a male Jet Blue flight attendant. He did basically what many of us would like to do at some points in our lives... he gave his job a giant FU. After a passenger hit him in the head with his bag and refused to sit down, the flight attendant went on the plane's PA and dog cussed the guy. When the plane landed he grabbed two beers, pulled the emergency door, and slid down the slide. He has been arrested but has also become a hero of sorts. However, I hardly think what he did was worth celebrating. He flipped out because a passenger was rude to him? Give me a break! What if everyone who had had a rude flight attendant flipped out on the flight attendant? There would be anarchy. Get a life bro. Also, who knows how his antics affected the ability of some of the passengers to make their next flight? Hero? Hardly. Try short sighted and immature.

-J

Back Home

2010-07-28T19:52:00.001-07:00

I was in the Washington, D.C. area for a couple of weeks for work related training. I had a pretty good time while I was up there. It was probably hotter and more humid than it was here in Mississippi for the time I was up there. I also lived through my second earthquake (the first was in San Francisco when I was a kid) so that was something interesting. What was the most interesting thing I saw? That would have to be a guy covering his chocolate muffin with ketchup and then licking off the ketchup while he was eating the muffin. YUM!

I went to the National Archives and, as usual, was dismayed by my fellow Americans. There was basically no line to see the Magna Carta at the Archives. I thought, wow this is great, I can just walk up to the Magna Carta and look at it as long as I want. The problem came a couple of days later when I was at the Pentagon City shopping mall. I needed to buy a pair of boxer shorts. So to figure out the best place to do so, I went to look at the mall directory. There was a line at least five people deep. Yep.

-J

Rosebud

2010-07-07T19:30:00.000-07:00

It is a pretty famous twist ending, so I do not think I will spoil anything for anyone by giving away the ending of Citizen Kane but the story is basically about the rise and fall and rise and fall of a man who has had the whole world as his playground and led a full life. The story is related as he is on his death bed and the word he mutters is Rosebud. At the end, the viewer sees that Rosebud is the name of the simple winter sled he had as a child. He had the entire world but in the end, the most happy he had ever been was as a child with Rosebud.

Enter LeBron James. Likeable guy, early twenties, worth hundreds of millions of dollars. He was drafted straight out of High School to the Cleveland Cavilers, basically his hometown team. Now he is an unrestricted free agent and has his sights set on places that can pay him tons of money and give him a chance to compete for a championship, something he has never won. LeBron has strung out the process of this decision for some time now and has decided to announce on ESPN Thursday night. It seems strange for LeBron to make a move that reeks so much of a highly exaggerated self worth. When I heard he was making his announcement in that way I immediately thought, what nerve he has to think I even care. But now, after thinking about it, he never signed with a school to play in the NCAA. Yes, he was hyped while he was a child. Yes, he is the much celebrated first overall pick and nicknamed "King James." But he never sat at that table, covered by the national, or even local, news and put on the hat of the team he had chosen. He never had a signing day. And so, even though it seems a little over the top, maybe LeBron is looking for Rosebud.

-J

Trees, Staring, and Inconsistent Glitter Faces

2010-06-30T19:49:00.000-07:00

Yes, to tell everyone else what you Twitards know from the title of this post, Nicole and I went to see Twilight Eclipse tonight. My review- if you like the first ones you will like this one. If you found the first ones boring you will find this one boring. Its pretty much the exact same thing as the last movie except... um... uhh... oh yeah! There is a girl wolf. There are some super sweet action poses that Nicole would think were stupid if they were in Hot Rod, but since they are not they are totally rad (even though they were intended to be cheesy in Hot Rod whereas in Twilight they are totally serious). I am always happy to see Bryce Dallas Howard in stuff (in the series's Bewitched moment).

I do not get the appeal, and I do not think I ever will. It is what it is. Girls/women and Ben seem to love it (the same can be said for Bradley Cooper, although that I can see). Most men seem to be perplexed by its appeal. I give up and take my medicine every few months.

-J

web-land quiz time!

2010-06-29T19:15:00.000-07:00

So, I went from not having a single post in nearly two years to now having a post three days in a row. It appears I have had some things on my mind. Will I continue to update this often? I do not know, maybe. I do know I have some ideas for the rest of the week. But now, for the moment you have all been waiting for: a new web-land quiz!

Here are four recent United States Supreme Court nominees:

Two are Democrats and two are Republicans. Can you guess who without knowing anything about their platforms or beliefs? The answer is below....

ANSWER:

The two on the left were nominated by Barak Obama, a Democrat. The two on the right were nominated by George W. Bush, a Republican. Do you want to know an easy way to tell? That's right Democratic nominees are always fugly (if you don't know what this means ask someone under 35). Thanks for playing.

-J

To boldy go?

2010-06-28T19:17:00.000-07:00

Pugsley (our dog) has had to be dipped every other week for the last two months to take care of demodectic mange. So, today was one of those days. When I went to the vet's office to pick him up I saw something rather peculiar in the parking lot. It was the USS HAISE, otherwise known as the Jackson (metro?) chapter of the Star Trek fan club. See it for youself above. Here is their website. As you can see they are quite dedicated. To be honest, on the photo gallery, I have really no idea what is going on in some of those pictures. I do think it is pretty funny that they had a Halloween party where they dressed up as they generally seem to be dressed up most other days as well. Also, whoever dressed up as the Alien needs some kind of award. I also am very amused at the trip they took to Sonny's BBQ. It has a certain fish out of water appeal. It seems like they do quite a bit of philanthropy in the area and that is to be commended. And hey, if they enjoy it, more power to them. Who are we to judge? Still, it made for an interesting trip to the vet.

Needless to say, the pet picked up at the vet's office was a cat.

-J

Around Another Bend...

2010-06-26T19:43:00.000-07:00

I am sure with my long absence from blogging I have alienated my only two or three readers yet, I feel like it is time for me to get back into this again. Even if it's not being read, I at least get some egomanicial pleasure out of seeing my thoughts floating through cyberspace. I have found myself saying more and more often lately, I would write a blog entry about this or that. Those thoughts (that word looks strange typed) now have a home again. Incidentally, I didn't really have anything on my mind to write about tonight. So, I will leave it at that.

-J

An Interesting Turn of Events

2008-09-29T20:21:00.000-07:00

As many of you may know, the bailout compromise has failed. This of course means the average American has won. At press time, the House of Representatives stated that private money should stay in private hands. The vote was close, but in all honesty the bill was killed by a bi-partisan effort.

Democrats such as Nancy (pause for shiver) Pelosi and the fabulous Barney Frank immediately pointed the finger at the Republicans in Congress. They did so because they think you, the American people, just fell off of the turnip truck. They probably do not think you can read and/or access the Internet. Here are the real facts:

Democrats have a pure majority in the House of Representatives of 235 to 199. This means if the Democrats had their own house in order, they could have passed the bill anyway.

Of the Mississippi delegation, the three Democrats voted AGAINST the bill while Chip Pickering, who is not seeking re-election, voted for it.

Even though the bill was supposed to be bi-partisan, during the debate Pelosi called out the Republicans. This obviously made some of them pretty angry.

President Bush has absolutely no credibility/power when it comes to the rank and file Republicans.

End of fact.

Now, for some inferences we can make from these facts. The two major political parties are in shambles. There is no party unity in either case. This is great for the country. George Washington, a name that often engenders a bit of respect from many Americans, abhorred political parties and warned the United States to not form them. We would probably be better off had Hamilton and Jefferson followed this advice. Instead of listening to Pelosi or Bush, the members of Congress worried about their constituents, how novel.

The Republican party has taken the populist mantle from the Democrats. The Democratic Party is up in arms that their plan to save the salaries of a few already rich (probably white) men. Now the Republicans are on the side of the everyman. I am both a Republican and a populist and you can ask my wife, I thought that meant I was crazy. The Democrats have long been the party of factory workers, rank and file, and labor organizations. Now, the Republican party is protecting the yeomen, who are the backbone of our Nation.

President Bush has jumped the shark. Wikipedia the phrase. Once you read it, if you know anything about the bailout package he tried to push through, you will understand exactly what I mean. I don't completely blame him. I believe Bernake and Paulson gave him bad advice and only one option. Doesn't say much for Harvard business degrees though.

Finally, the Democrats have squandered their advantage gained from general dissatisfaction in the Bush administration. Rank and file Democrats just want to hold on to their seats so they vote against this great communist scheme. The big knock against the Democrats for the last 15 years is that all they do is B!tch and Whine. In response, they whined that they had no power to do anything. Once they got power, they promptly did nothing with it. But they had a President from the other party so all of their bills go vetoed right? According to Wikipedia, President Bush has had the least number of vetoes since Warren Harding. So, deal with it. The American people should take note that even though they may dislike President Bush, the Democrats have squandered their chance. The Republicans have made it well known that they are no longer loyal Bushies. So, my suggestion, in your local congressional race this fall, vote Republican.

-J

fREDeral loan buyout

2008-09-20T19:22:00.001-07:00

This is a pretty serious post, on par with my Rumba warning from last year.

I am sure by now most of you (if anyone actually reads this) have heard of the recent Bush administration proposed buyout of essentially bad loans to the tune of around $1 Trillion or in actual terms: $1,000,000,000,000.00. That is a lot of zeros. The bad loans the government is buying out relate to mortgages. The major companies involved are Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and AIG.

I think this is a bad idea. The government believes (in the Bush administration read this as Prays) buying these bad loans will save the backbone of American financial institutions. This outcome is merely a possibility. Another possibility is that this will do us no good at all.

What it will do is have the United States take possession of heretofore private loans. To me this is too large an intervention into the private sector by the government. That is why I titled my post the way I did. This public purchase of private debt reeks of the kind of state ownership unseen since the fall of the U.S.S.R.

One merely need look at history (or Star Wars) to see how small events can domino into a world changing catastrophe. Augustus took power in small increments eventually destroying the Roman Republic once and for all. Hitler did the same thing, gradually, taking small steps and then eventually threatening the entire world (See Star Wars Episodes I-III to see the birth of the Empire). Simply put, this mortgage buy out may look like a one time thing on the surface but it could very much be the first (ok the TVA was probably first) in a series of events that absolutely change the fabric of the United States.

So, much for small government at any rate. At the very least even if this does work it represents an unholy intervention by the government of the United States into the daily lives of Americans. This is called Totalitarianism.

These three companies mentioned above got into this mess by giving out these variable interest mortgage rates. They got in trouble because they were acting as predators and using under-educated and unsophisticated purchasers. My solution unfortunately for the people who were the prey (who may still be left unprotected by the government buyout anyway) is to just let their loans fail. As it stands now there is no accountability for these companies. They act like they acted and face small consequences because the government is going to buy them out. So in the future when all of this is behind us, not withstanding the other consequences, other companies are going to do the same thing. If there is no punishment there will be no incentive to change.

According to MONEY magazine's website, the CEO of Lehman Brothers made $22.1 million in 2007. MSNBC reports Merrill Lynch's CEO as having made over $46 million in 2007. Fortune reports the poor white trash CEO of AIG only made $13 million in 2007 (down from around $26 million in 2006). Do you foresee the point I am getting at? I find it difficult to stomach that these companies that paid their bosses this amount of money are essentially getting bailed out by the government while small businesses run by John Q. American fail everyday. Some are failing because they cannot secure loans because of the predatory practices of companies like these. This almost makes me physically ill just to think about it. If the government does succeed in bailing these companies out, I think these CEOs should be publicly executed on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

-J

Jeremy D. Litton, Esq.

2008-09-18T15:53:00.000-07:00

I found out today that I passed the bar. I don't know anything other than that. I will be getting some information relating to my scores and other administrative things mailed to me. This was just the early notification online.

Yay for me.

-J

News and Notes

2008-09-07T17:15:00.000-07:00

Ahh, Football Season is here again. All is good with the world (other than I am unemployed, I don't know my bar score, and hurricane season is at its zenith).

It has actually been a fairly eventful couple of weeks for us. First off, our New Orleans family was in town for about a week because of Hurricane Gustav. We had them over for a lovely Labor Day cookout and watched with a sense of relief as the hurricane seemed to largely bypass New Orleans and the West Bank. They have returned home and found their houses intact and they have electricity again. The threat of Ike looms as of now, but hopefully it will hit somewhere else also. I personally vote that it hit the Dallas Cowboys.

We got to spend a decent amount of time with them last week. We went to Tunica and experienced the Paula Deen Buffet. Her famous fried chicken was pretty good but it was not really any better than Two Sisters in Jackson. The Paula Deen Buffet however has great desserts. I recommend anyone who goes to Tunica to try it out. Other than the seafood buffet on the weekend, it is actually not that expensive either.

This weekend Nicole and I went to a Nokes family reunion. That is my mother's side of the family. It is mostly put on by PawPaw's sisters Delores and Doris. This side of the family used to see each other every single Christmas Day. We have not gotten to do that since Grandma Nokes died (Granny to most of the family). So, although they bear a heavy burden to organize this event every year, I know it means a lot to those of us who remember Christmas mornings at Grandma Nokes's house, and I know she would be very pleased with her two daughters for getting the family back together. We had our first reunion last year. There were a few less people there this time but there was still a pretty good crowd.

At the park there is an artesian well that puts out warm water all year round. Instead of capitalizing on that natural spring, the park has it enclosed by a fence (actually two) and it is full of alligators. PawPaw and I found out Thursday night that they would feed the gators on Saturday at 5 PM. We talked about how we planned to see it all weekend and totally blanked at 5 and completely missed it. The park, Leroy Percy, is the oldest state park in MS and we stayed a couple of nights in one of the cabins that was original to the park. It did not really bother me but Nicole, Jessica, and Lizzie were both freaking out all night. I am not really sure why but they did not really like it. The only really bad thing about the weekend was the mosquitoes. I got so many mosquito bites I am pretty sure a blind person could read me.

I got to watch some football today. I have missed it. My Redskins look like they are gonna stink, but I did win my first fantasy football game today.

-J

For Lucy (don't worry this is a happy story unless you are a tree rat)

2008-08-24T17:33:00.000-07:00

Lucy is a two year old mutt. She is part terrier and part crazy. Someone left her in her infancy at a dumpster in Meridian, MS. She was taken to the pound and adopted my my Aunt and Uncle. When she was a small puppy, her first summer, I played a major role in raising her as my Aunt and Uncle were out of town and I was in town to work for the MS AG's office.

This week, I got news that made me so proud of my little baby. She killed a squirrel. Lulu, as friends and family call her has been on a mission for more than a year to "get the squirrel." She has succeeded, and I am strangly incredibly impressed and proud of her accomplishment. I can only imagine her great sense of accomplishment and the way her nub (what is left of her tail) wagged.

I am not there to congratulate her personally, so all I can do is sing her praises on the internet. So anyone reading this shold remember lucy and her first kill. If you are reading this and you are a squirrel, be afraid.

-J

A Random Thought

2008-08-19T18:58:00.001-07:00

I had a radom thought I wanted to share with you today. Remember on my last post I promised quantity not quality.

Do you think that some of the cases of SARS and Bird Flu in China a couple of years ago were just misdiagnosed cases of Olympic Fever?

Live* from Beijing**

2008-08-17T08:29:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I updated this blog. I have been studying and taking the Mississippi Bar Exam. It ended a couple of weeks ago. Since then I have been either on the road or taking some R&R.

With introductions aside, it is time to get to the entry proper.

First of all, I hope all of you have been watching the Olympics. The United States men have been dominating in the pool, led by the now eight gold medals of Michael Phelps. It is truly and extraordinary feat. He says he will return to the London Olympics in 2012, but he will not participate in so many races. He is obviously the biggest name in Olympics. The women's swimming team however are a national disappointment.

The United States also dominates in beach volleyball. The May/Walsh women's team looks to be fairly unstoppable. I watched a game the other day where the team from Belgium had them down and the U.S. rallied against 5 Belgium set points to win the set. Then May/Walsh completely dismantled them in the second set. On another note, the women's match between Brazil and Germany has got to be the hottest sporting event ever.

I find myself strangely addicted to watching water polo. The game is essentially hockey in the water. It came on late night in the 2000 Olympics I think and I began to watch it there. Now it comes on during the day and I still find myself watching it.

My favorite new sport is handball. I cannot believe this is actually a sport. I don't mean to take away from it as far as the athletic training or skill needed. The reason I say this is because you can literally run, not walk right up to someone and throw the ball as hard as you want right at their face. Ouch.

In non-Olympic news, it seems like we are again on the verge of a world war. This one probably makes the Vegas odds makers scratch their heads. I mean come on! I think we were all prepared for Iran or North Korea to start World War III. Then out of the blue Russia invades Georgia? Those crazy Russians, they have come out of no where to lead the pack. Although, there has been a cease fire, Russia continues to advance in Georgia. This brings up two points:

The first point is that we need to realize that this is perhaps history repeating itself. The world must take a stand unlike it did when the Germans annexed Austria and invaded Czechoslovakia. I am not advocating direct military confrontation, but Russia cannot be allowed to get away with this nor should it be allowed to retain possession of the Georgian areas seized. There is obviously a problem with the United Nations. To the best of my knowledge all the UN has said is please stop. There should be consequences lest we end up back in a world war.

The second point is only brought up by the coincidental name of the country being invaded to the home state of one of our most worthless and loudmouthed Presidents, Jimmy Carter. I find it interesting that every time President Bush farts, Carter calls him a war criminal, but he seems to say nothing about Russia invading Georgia. I must stop there. I feel my ire towards Jimmy Carter reaching a boiling point.

I promise to give posts more frequently in the future.

-J

*I am not writing this as you read it
**not actually from Beijing

George Carlin's Death

2008-06-24T12:40:00.000-07:00

Well, one of my personal favorites George Carlin has died and I have little faith that his soul is in a pleasant place. Fortunately, Carlin would have agreed with me. George Carlin was essentially an evangelical atheist. Because of this he lived that one shot of his to the fullest. For this George Carlin should be both revered and pitied.

It is without doubt that George Carlin was one of my favorite comedians. I do not think he was the first observational comedian but he was certainly the most in depth and controversial. George Carlin is probably most remembered for his Seven Dirty Words, but his humor was more than just foul language. I think his legacy is mixed but as far as his comedy is concerned he was one of the greats.

I say his legacy is mixed for a number of reasons. First of all, George Carlin was a student of humanity generally and American society more specifically. A good example of this is the title of his second book "Napalm and Silly Putty." He was merely commenting on the capacity of the human mind to create two things that are so diametrically different. One is a gel like substance created to incinerate forests, villages, and people. The other is a gel like substance that's main function is copying cartoon strips from the newspaper. He also comments on how the government has demonized explicit lyrics on albums when the definition of the word explicit is "fully and clearly expressed or demonstrated." This is hardly something to be feared. Few comedians are as insightful as this. However, the thing many modern comedians have picked up on is his prodigious use of swear words. Often times today comedians rely on the foul language to be the humor. This is not a good thing.

Carlin is also to be revered because he pushed the envelope of the 1st Amendment. Carlin was arrested a number of times for his routines but was always exonerated. His Seven Dirty Words routine was the subject of a very important 1st Amendment Supreme Court Case. However unlike other 1st Amendment "heroes" such as Larry Flynt or 2 Live Crew, Carlin lost his case! George Carlin's Supreme Court case actually led to upholding of restrictions on 1st Amendment Speech. So although he should be remembered for pushing the 1st Amendment envelope, his contribution is actually one that limits the 1st amendment.

Finally, the work he did in his later years (post 2000 at least) was certainly not on par with his previous work. He seemed to be more of a caricature of himself. He was an angry old man rather than a commentator on humanity. It was a sad way for him to go out.

But hey lets not forget he was a very funny man who also did a number of children's projects, most recently being in the Pixar release "Cars." If you would like a personal suggestion of some of Carlin's work, I would recommend his books "Braindroppings" or "Napalm and Silly Putty." If you would like to see one of his many stand up specials, "Carlin on Campus" is probably his best known classic. For one of his great bits which fits the PG rating of this blog check out "Baseball and Football" Which I have linked right here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YphEUa5LPjM

Enjoy and if you feel the urge say a prayer for his soul. He wouldn't have wanted you to in his life but I bet he is wishing you would about now.

-J

Fun with local news

2008-06-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

There were two stories in The Daily Mississippian today that were absolutely fantastic for the discerning person. For those of you who do not know, The Daily Mississippian is the student newspaper here at the University of Mississippi. It comes out every weekday even in the summer. More often than not the writing is very adequate.

So much for the introductions. The first story is more of a picture that I found amusing rather than the story itself. As many of you know, the University here is engaged in marijuana research sponsored by the federal government. Recent reports released have announced that the potency of marijuana has increased over the last few decades. The pro pot group NORML has had responses in the subsequent issues of the paper. You do not need to read the article but check out the picture here: http://media.www.thedmonline.com/media/storage/paper876/news/2008/06/18/News/Norml.Director.Seeks.Pot.Regulation.Education-3382916.shtml

Now maybe its just me, but that looks like a hand rolled cigarette in the hand of the (presumably) woman out in the weed field. Of course we all know that most rolled cigarettes are of the marijuana variety rather than tobacco. I really have no opinion on the merits of the story of the controversy surrounding the potency of the drug, however it seems to me like the wolf is guarding the sheep.

The second story that I found amusing is this one: http://media.www.thedmonline.com/media/storage/paper876/news/2008/06/18/News/Unknown.Number.Of.Ferals.Roam.Oxford-3382922.shtml

Feral cats are a huge problem and packs of feral dogs wandering around a town is certainly no laughing matter. I do think the mention of a feral goat problem is fairly humorous. I have never seen, nor did I foresee packs of wildish goats menacing our local tin can population. This is made even funnier by the classified advertisement "For Sale: Quality Meat Goats. All Sizes Available. Prices vary according to size" which was also in today's The Daily Mississippian. It seems like the demand would be low for goats when you can apparently find them roaming about town. I applaud the paper for continuing during the summer even though there are few students and apparently nothing to really write about. When the work day grows too long, or the task grows too difficult, I hope those of you who read this blog will take time out to think of the packs of feral goats around town and have a chuckle.

-J

Motion Picture Malaise

2008-05-26T20:14:00.000-07:00

I consider myself a fan of movies. I especially like to go see them on the big screen and if they are good enough, I reward them with a DVD purchase. Some of the highlights of my life at the cinema (other than when I worked at one) include Jurassic Park, Independence Day, Spiderman, Little Miss Sunshine, The Lion King, Big Fish, and the Royal Tenenbaums. Now these movies are not necessarily great, but at the time I watched them on the big screen they made me feel like movies are supposed to make me feel. Little Miss Sunshine I thought was great because everyone in the theater, no matter what their background, race, age or any defining characteristic was we were all laughing hysterically. For a movie to get that reaction out of a totally different group of people to me was very special. The Royal Tenebaums I loved for the complete opposite reason. Nicole and I seemed to be the only people in the theater laughing at all. This made me feel like we got the joke and no one else did. Spiderman was nothing less than the realization of a childhood dream. Sure, I had seen clips from the old Spiderman live action TV show from the 1970s, but to see Spiderman fully realized on the big screen cannot be put into words for me. I just list the effects these three movies had on me at the time to give a sense of what I mean by making me feel like they are supposed to make me feel.

So often in life our biggest disappointments come from our greatest loves. The more you cherish something the larger the chance it will let you down. I have felt particularly let down by the recent dreck Hollywood has churned out.

First, we shall take the case of Spiderman 3. As much as I loved Spiderman the movie and Spiderman generally (I wrote my essay to get into college about why I would like to be Spiderman for a day), I found this film to be abhorring. I had no problem with Spiderman trying to be friends with the Second Green Goblin, but having the Green Goblin proclaim he was BFF with Spiderman would be like Rosie O'Donnell and Charleton Heston having a secret love child. It is absolutely against the character and the history of Spiderman. Many people liked the movie. It honestly made me wish for a short period of time that they had never made any Spiderman movies because it led to this sense of literal betrayal. I felt Sam Rami, had not only betrayed all of the fans he endeared himself to in the first movies but also he betrayed Spiderman (I know he is not real). I refuse to buy it on DVD or watch it again.

In reality there were three other tertiary films that came out recently and they all were terrible. Oceans 13, Pirates 3, and Shreck 3 all started out as nice films. I remember seeing Pirates and Oceans 11 in the theater and really enjoying my experience. By the third time around the characters were stale and the plots were awful. The ship in Pirates 3 spent half of the movie in the middle of the desert for Pete's sake. The first Shreck I watched in my room in the fraternity house with Nicole and my fraternity little brother. I remember thinking how neat it was that all of the famous fairy tale characters were part of this modern irreverent tale. By the third one it just became the same old recycled mess.

Finally, my more recent malaise has come about because I recently went to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. After watching this movie I can honestly say that Stephen Spielberg has lost it and that George Lucas is systematically trying to destroy my childhood which he actually helped to create. In the late 1970s to the mid 1990s Spielberg directed such movies as Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Close Encounters, ET, Schindler's List, and Jurassic Park. Now he has moved on to more entertaining fare such as AI, Minority Report, The Terminal and this new piece of Indy junk. It is obvious that he has not made a good movie in 10 years. And certainly not a great one like the ones I have just named. Thats fine, he has lost it.

George Lucas is much more blameworthy. He helped create two of the greatest movie franchises ever. Star Wars and Indiana Jones. The first films in both of those franchises are absolutely amazing. The special effects in Star Wars still basically hold up and that movie was made 30 years ago. Since then, really after the original trilogies ended, he has seemingly made his singular goal to destroy his own legacy. Phantom Menace and especially Clone Wars are just difficult to watch at all. And this new Indiana Jones movie stinks. Apparently, greasers have the unique talent of swinging around in trees like Tarzan only dreamed of, after being apart for more than 10 years you can pick right up with the woman you impregnated and left like you had just come back home from a day at work and KGB agents say certain words with an English accent. If you can suspend disbelief for all of that, you are almost there. Next you have to accept the fact that THIS MOVIE IS ABOUT ALIENS. The great thing about Indiana Jones movies was that the amount of supernatural goings on was believable. Because at one time, Lucas and Spielburg could tell a decent yarn you could believe the Holy Grail existed or the Ark of the Covenant held terrible powers, but aliens putting all of the knowlege of the universe into crystal skulls? So George Lucas has taken characters that I loved, played with, and pretended to be when I was a little kid and destroyed them. Kudos George Lucas, your goal has been achieved in my book. I feel like fans should sue you to keep you from screwing up your own work. But that is probably too late.

Speaking of late...

-J

Is there anyone still out there?

2008-04-20T08:46:00.000-07:00

I feel as if I have alienated my already dwindling audience. I am sorry I have not written a post in over a month. I have been kinda busy trying to find a job. Still looking by the way. Yesterday afternoon I did my last work in Law School writing a Charitable Remainder Unitrust, Client letter, and an Advance Healthcare Directive. This is all for my Will and Trust Drafting Class. Now have I alienated the rest of you? I said all that to say I have no real excuse for not updating my blog.

I have a question. Why can't we make some kinda fuel out of trees/wood? Ethanol and biodiesel are made from corn, used cooking oil, or sugar. Seems to me that wood would have enough of these sugars to make some sort of fuel. I know sticks and turpentine burn which are both wood products. The obvious problem to me would be pollution, but if they can make clean burning coal, why not wood? Just a thought.

Also, we have begun to honor our future overlords: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24181778/.
This is mostly a joke. Some honorees have been R2D2, C3PO, Lt. Cmdr. Data, and Hal. Hal? We are now honoring computer who tried to kill its human masters. Its one thing to laugh at my previous posts pointing out the problems with increasing robot intelligence, but honoring Hal? This is a bad omen.

Thats all I have right now. Sorry.

-J

More Anti-Hillary Thoughts

2008-03-03T11:29:00.000-08:00

I guess we can all see where this blog is going if Hillary does get elected...

This particular post in in regards to Hillary's recent media whoring. Hillary had a guest spot on Saturday Night Live last Saturday. I actually find it difficult to look at her because she makes me so angry. Also, last week she appeared on another New York favorite, the Late Show with David Letterman.

On Letterman, Hillary came on in a spot and said, "If you go to Hillaryclinton.com right now you can find my recipe for Snicker doodle Cookies." So, I, a cookie fan, decided to give it a shot and went to her website. Sure enough, there was a recipe for Snicker doodle cookies on her front page (it is not on her front page any longer). To Hillary's credit, she actually told the truth on Letterman. There is a first time for everything. I believe this whole chain of events is a microcosm for why Hillary should not be President.

The first thing is that when I clicked on the recipe, it came up as Cat Cora's Snicker doodle recipe. Hillary could not even tell the truth about whose recipe it was! Seriously? Yes, seriously. How can we trust a President who is lying to our faces about cookies? What would it have hurt her to say, "If you want a GOOD Snicker doodle recipe go to my website."? I know you may think I just misheard it. Thank you youtube, here is the link: http://youtube.com/watch?v=rfTmE4NGdX8. I just think it is pretty telling that she could not even tell the truth about this. For your further reading pleasure here is a list of ways to identify a pathological liar: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_can_you_tell_if_someone_is_a_pathological_liar
(As a post script to this first problem I am now putting Cat Cora, a Mississippian, on notice of a boycott for supporting someone who maligned her home state so badly. If Cat keeps selling out her fellow Mississippians, she shall feel my wrath.)

The second problem I had with Cookiegate is the fact that she put a cookie recipe on her website at all. Hillary is supposed to be representing enlightened, empowered women on par with any man. It makes me wonder how many Presidential candidates in history have felt that they needed a cookie recipe to garner votes. It reminds me when about a year ago, the Women Law Student group had a bake sale to raise funds for something. Seriously, pick a gender role. Either be liberated or don't, you cannot be everything. If I were a woman, I think I would feel a little betrayed by all of Hillary's crying and Cookiegate.

That's all I have to say at the moment.

-J

MSinformed 2008 Primary

2008-02-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

On March 11, 2008, according to our new Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann (a MSinformed 2007 pick) we are going to have ourselves a little primary election. Now, previously I told you all who I thought you should vote for. Today, I am going to tell you who you shouldn't vote for. It should be of no suprise, that I can think of nothing worse than Hillary Clinton as our next President.

In the Republican race, it is of no consequence who anyone in Mississippi votes for because Senator McCain is going to win. I predict Huckabee will carry Mississippi anyway. However in March the race between Obama and Clinton will still be very relevant. I am sure both candidates will come to Mississippi. I expect my home state to welcome them both with open arms. However, I also expect my home state to remember Hillary's comments insulting the State of Mississippi when she was pandering to voters in Iowa. If you don't remember here is a link: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2007/10/what-is-hillary.html

I made sure to use a major media outlet such as ABC news because I did not want any conservative "slant" to come off in this. This outrage we should all have toward Hillary should be without regard for political party, race, or sex. I am not going to get into this too much more because I feel my mind filling with rage. But please, do not reward Hillary for vitriol. If anything after the last 7 years we should all realize the United States needs a President who will unite the nation, and not try to divide it for personal gain.

-J

My Anthropology Theory, EA Sports Lets You Decide, and Other Musings

2008-02-16T08:55:00.001-08:00

Hello again,

Recently the Westminster Dog Show has been all over the news. Uno a beagle, won best in show. This was suprisingly the first ever win for a beagle. However, the media made it a little too big of a deal. The beagle is recognizable to most every American. From reports I have heard, the beagle has been in the top ten list of breeds in American homes for the last 100 years. And if you are not aware (because you had your head in a hole) Snoopy is also a beagle. But contrary to many media reports, I do not believe Snoopy is proud of Uno. My reasoning? Snoopy is FAKE.

This recent ad nauseum coverage of dogs, especially Uno, in the media led me to come up with an Anthropological Theory. The theory is, "If we had to today, humans would be incapable of domesticating dogs." (editor's note: I am writing the boring piece first because I want you to read it before you get to the fun) When dogs were first domesticated from wolves, humans existed in a similar pack structure. There would have been one alpha male, a number of subordinates, females, and children. Therefore, when a wolf cub was raised by humans, it was a power structure the wolf could easily fit. The alpha male, or chieftan of the tribe would operate as the top of the hierarchy, so the wolf would never attack him. The subordinate males would exert their dominance over the wolf in the hierarchy also thereby putting the wolf in its place. It is obvious today that humans have lost the ability to put a dog in its place... That is why when someone keeps a wolf in a neighborhood as a pet, it invaribly escapes and gnaws off someones face. Luckily, our ancestors did the dirty work for us because we could not do it today.

Behold look into the eyes of a killer!

(I would like to note that to get this photo to appear in the proper place, I had to actually edit the HTML script. There is a first time for everything)

Second on the agenda is NCAA 2009 for Nintendo Wii. Not only will this be the first NCAA football game for the Wii, but it will also have a mascot on the cover. And EA Sports is letting America decide on which mascot to use. This brings up two things: 1) MSU's Bully mascot could actually be on the cover of a videogame sold all over the United States; and 2) Ole Miss doesn't have an official mascot, so they are out of luck. You can vote once per day. Here is the link:

http://www.easports.com/ncaa09/

Finally, I read an article this week that was not by itself funny, but the pictures accompanying the article are hilarious (and strange). It is the article from England that caught some play here in the States, regarding the World's Smallest Bodybuilder. The humor to me is not necessarily that idea, but the gentleman in question himself. He has terrible bleach blonde hair, a nasty mustache like kids have in Junior High to "look cool," and an absolutely no nonsense look on his face. Here is the link: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=513820&in_page_id=1811

The picture of the other bodybuilder holding him in his hand reminds me of this picture: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=492264&in_page_id=1811

Now my article has come full circle, bookended by dogs (nice work if I do say so). Also, note that both of those articles are from the Daily Mail in the UK which just goes to show you, there is actually nothing else worth writing about in the UK (but wait Jeremy, didn't this blog start by writing about your trip to the UK? Yes, quite a paradox).

-J

Alas, There Can be Only One Egg Bowl

2008-02-03T08:03:00.000-08:00

Back in November, the Mississippi State offense suddenly woke up with about 6 minutes left in the game. In a flurry of scoring, the Bulldogs put 17 straight points on the board to win the game, sending the tens of thousands of MSU fans at the game into ecstacy.

A similar situation occurred on Saturday, February 2, 2008. Mississippi State's offense woke up with about 6 minutes left in the game. They even had similar deficit. This time the comback would fall short. Tennessee, playing as well as any team in the US, answered many of MSU's scores and defended the rest. Within the final minute, MSU had one chance to go ahead and one chance to tie. Riley Benock, who seemingly had a wide open shot, decided to pump-fake and pass. He traveled. Benock has shown himself to be a sharpshooter from anywhere on the court and until that point had been very dependable with the basketball. He is just a freshman. I certainly do not blame him for the loss. In fact, I would prefer he start over Turner, simply because he does take such good care of the ball. I have more on Benock in a second. Then team leader Jamont Gordon had a fairly good look from the top of the three-point line and just missed the shot. Lets face it, he is no Michael Jordan. He is a major reason State even made it back into that game. He did not make the game winning shot, but he was very much responsible for making sure we had a chance, so no fault can be put on him. So then, after such a rough week I think many Bulldog fans, like myself want to know who to blame. And I (who can't play basketball to save my life) have a very simple answer. Nobody and everybody.

I think the simple problem in the last two games is shooting. Not that State did not shoot a decent percentage, but that they didn't shoot. In the Tennessee game, State shot 16 less times than Tennessee. If State would have made 46% of those shots they would have scored 7 more points. That would have been a win. Now in the Arkansas game, Arkansas shot 12 more times than MSU. At 40% shooting that would have only accounted for about 4 points. Of course the game was a 20 point blowout, but who knows if those extra points would have changed the dynamic of the game. This goes back to Benock. He didn't shoot at all. He scored 12 on 4 threes against Ole Miss, yet continually passed up open shots against Tennessee. The crowd knew it too. They booed him at one point for passing up the shot. Again, I don't blame it on Benock, I think it is something that should be worked on by the whole club, staff and players. You can't score unless you shoot.

After the game, I expected today's headlines on ESPN and other publications to read something like exposed or overrated or something like that. But instead they seemed to signal repsect. I think many pundits now realize that if MSU makes it to the dance (which is looking less likely unless they make a deep run in the SEC tourney), they will be a tough put out. So, I guess that is a good thing.

Well, at least it was a good day for the Redskins (as good as it can be when the Giants are playing in the Superbowl and you have no coach). Art Monk and Darrell Green were selected for the Hall of Fame. The honor was long overdue for Monk. Unsuprisingly, it was Green's first time on the ballot. Unsuprisingly because he is the best NFL Cornerback ever (eat that Deion). So, congrats to them.

I was gonna write about something else, but I forgot what that was so, enjoy the Superbowl.

-J

Two Entries in One Month!

2008-01-23T18:04:00.000-08:00

Hello again. I figured it was time to update everyone on things that have been bothering me lately. In case anyone was wondering, blogger has added the option of writing one's blog in Arabic. Since I don't wish for this blog to show up on any FBI or CIA list, (and I have no idea how to read or write in Arabic) I think I will stick to the Roman alphabet (with Js and Us of course)(yes that was a nerd joke, I do have a minor in Classical studies).

The first thing on my mind is something that has been bothering me for at least a year. What is the deal with the constant bathing of produce in the grocery? Way back in the day I remember seeing the produce guy spritzing the produce once in a blue moon. Now they almost all have automatic mist sprayers that are more akin to an irrigation system than a squirt bottle. I assume that the spraying of the veggies keeps the colors more vibrant and perhaps fresher. There is something to be said about this in small doses, like a guy with a squirt bottle. But, I refuse to believe lettuce needs a swamp like environment to remain fresh. I am pretty sure that around the green onion section at Kroger here in Oxford, a cypress tree is beginning to sprout. I am unafraid to shake as much of the excess water off of my vegetables, especially lettuce. This generally not only sprays water around everywhere but also throws leaves into the floor (and embarasses Nicole). I am fine with that. As far as I am concerned that is the price the store pays. The other problem is that I am not really sure how these sprayers are timed, but I am pretty sure they are programed to start spraying when I reach my hand into the case to grab something. It never fails, it is like some grocery executive saw me running through a sprinkler when I was four and thought "Hmm maybe he would appreciate this while he is at the grocery in 23 years. Well I don't.

By the way. I decided this week that I would like to be back in England right now. But I am not.

There is a Quiznos commercial with Michael Clarke Duncan talking about their flat bread "sammys." Here is a picture of Michael Clarke Duncan: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Dunkenkingpin.png
This is amusing to me because its funny to picture this giant man saying the word "sammy." Hopefully this thought will get you through some cold day.*

Since there does not seem to be any end to the writer's strike forthcoming, I would recommend everyone watching the reruns of 30 Rock when they come on. That is probably the funniest show on TV right now.

Anyway, that's about it for today.

-J

* FYI after posting this I looked at Michael Clarke Duncan's entry on Wikipedia to find out he went to Alcorn State for a while. I find that interesting.

Christmas, Anniversary, and the New Year

2008-01-04T08:10:00.001-08:00

Whew, its been over a month since I have made an entry. Sorry.

Nicole and I had a very nice Christmas. We split time between Meridian and New Orleans. This of course gave us the opportunity to see much of our family and some friends we have not seen since the wedding. Add on our two days in Memphis and we pretty much saw everyone. Also in Memphis we went to the Liberty Bowl and OOOOHHHHHH the Bulldogs won, shutting up the very obnoxious Central Florida fans next to us. Its hard to understand how a UCF fan could legitimately be obnoxious. I have had to deal with it from LSU and Alabama fans my whole life, but, both of those programs have had tons of success. I could even take an obnoxious Vandy fan. At least they play good competition. On a final UCF note, Kevin Smith is pretty good. He would have probably gotten 1000 yards if he was in the SEC (of course in CUSA he nearly broke the single season record).

Also, while in Memphis we got to enjoy the hospitality of my cousin Ashley and cousin-in-law Chris. It is kinda strange to remember Ashley as a kid, (or atleast a teen) and then as the college student who would come to visit us in Meridian and eat our popcorn, having seen her now in her current state as a mother and hostess. She performed both roles very well in the time we spent with her. Her two children, Sydney and Clayton, are as adorable as the day is long. This is the first time we have gotten to see Clayton since he has gained a personality, now being 2 years old. I was fairly impressed with the number of words he knows. I think his two favorites are Football and Eat.

Speaking of Football- Hail to the Redskins hottest team (atleast in the NFC) in football. Watch out lame Seahawks.

We spent our anniversary in Gatlinburg. It was a nice time. This was Nicole's first enjoyable trip there; I have had many such trips. We stayed at the Four Sisters' Inn. It was very nice. The inn is located about two blocks off of the middle of the main strip there. It is brand new and the staff (Jackie) was really nice and helpful. I am not getting paid for this endorsement. We ate at Maxwell's, the New Orleans Sandwich Company, and North China. They were all very good. The New Orleans Sandwhich Company has very good onion rings.

We rang in the New Year in Gatlinburg also. They do a pretty decent fireworks show. They drop a ball and shoot fireworks from the giant space needle in the middle of town. That apparently is the only reason to come to Gatlinburg during that particular time of the year because its too cold to do any of the summer stuff and too warm for the skiing. We bought some hot sauce and beef jerky though. That stuff is always there. I also conquered a childhood fear: The Mysterious Mansion haunted house. I went when I was really little and was so scared I had to leave before we really made it in. Unfortunately, the haunted house was pretty cheesy and lame. Luckily I went through with a couple of Russian girls who were scared out of their minds. That was kinda funny.

Thats pretty much it. I have pictures of all of this, which I will post as soon as I find the cord to connect the camera to my pc.

-J

Whats the deal with music?

2007-11-28T10:42:00.000-08:00

I have been an active consumer of music since about 1993. My interest in music goes back much further. I can still remember when I was sitting in the back seat of the car when my parents gave me my first tape without a book. It was The "Chipmunks." Although, I listened to music and bought tapes after that, the album Dookie by Greenday is what I can pin down to what made me start to love music. From 7th to 9th grade was a very exciting time for me as far as music was concerned. I expanded my tastes into many varied categories. Today, I believe I have a very eclectic taste in music. To put that into perspective, a couple of years ago I owned the albums that won Grammys for best rap album and best bluegrass album. When people ask me what type of music I like I generally just answer, "Good music."

For me, I think the way a certain guitar riff sounds or a harmony in a song makes me feel helps prove that I (and therefore other humans) have a soul. It is not a biological response; its not a memory response. I get a near euphoric feeling from the guitar solo in the Who's "Pure and Easy" and I know I had not heard it until I heard it the first time. I had that response the first time I heard it.

I bring this up now over some reflection during the Thanksgiving Holiday. I spent all of Thanksgiving Day around a baby. Every time music played, that baby danced. I got me to thinking that all off the babies I have ever seen do the same thing. Babies dance, seemingly unconsciously to music, like a knee jerk reaction. And its the same dance every time. Knees bend, hips swing, and arms flap.

I don't know what it is or why, but it is obvious to me that music occupies a very special place in the human experience. Whether it speaks directly to our souls or some kind of collective human memory (see Carl Jung), it causes a near automatic response for us when we are children and creates special feelings in us as adults.

So, if you think you don't really like music, I, respectfully, think you are wrong. You just need to listen to more music and find something you like. Whether its Wagner, Brittany Spears, Steel Pier, or Hank Williams does not matter as long as you like it, and as long as it makes you feel like part of our shared experience (and I don't have to listen to it if you are listening to Brittany or Steel Pier, sorry Nicole on the Steel Pier).

-J

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

2007-11-26T10:55:00.000-08:00

I know all of you who read web-land probably thought I was striking to show my solidarity with the Writers Guild. Well lucky for you that is not the case. So rest assured, when your favorite shows soon go to reruns, you may still read new posts on web-land.

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving. I know Nicole and I did. Here is one beef I have with Thanksgiving... the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. First of all, I must, in the interest of full disclosure, state I hate parades. I consider parades an excuse to wait in a line to see nothing. Parades on TV however make ESPN Poker look as exciting as the Superbowl with chainsaws (seriously, how crazy would that be). But, the thing that really gets me about this particular parade is all the fake performances. Every few floats the parade stops, Matt Lauer says some canned lines and then a teeny bopper lip syncs a verse from one of their popular songs. Who enjoys this? It is obviously as fake as Rudy Giuliani's conservative credentials. And frankly, their performances make Milli Vanilli look legit. I have to stop writing about this before I flip out.

How about the Mississippi Coaching Carousel? One would think USM would learn from UM's mistake. My old Driver's Ed instructor had a sticker in his office that said "I was there when we tied the Bear." Before Bower, USM major accomplishment was tying Alabama. He made USM into the best program in the state the last 20 years. He has had 14 consecutive winning seasons. It makes me just wonder if in 3 years USM fans are gonna have their heads in their hands like everyone in Oxford does today. BTW, previously those who were very defensive about/ supportive of Coach O are rabidly against him now. I have actually heard someone sing, "Ding Dong the Witch is Dead." I saw Dustin Mouzon at the video game store. He was quoted in the paper as saying he was disappointed in the firing, however, I heard him say that many of the players on the football team were unhappy with the decision. Go ahead and mark it down. I predict Callahan will be the next coach at Ole Miss.

Finally, in the realm of election coverage. Trent Lott has stated he would resign before January 1. This decision is tactically brilliant and shows why the Republican Party is gaining so much ground over the Democrats in MS. First of all Lott gets out and can start making some real money in a year where as new legislation would extend that time period. Secondly, now Haley can appoint someone to take his place. This will probably be Pickering, but even if it isn't, when a Democrat does finally get to challenge for the Senate seat, he will now have to run against an incumbent Republican. Brilliant. Lott has made sure to set the GOP up pretty sweetly in the state for years to come and to also make sure Republicans will be able to count on MS Senators being Republican at least for the foreseeable future.

That's all for now.

-J

United States Supreme Court

2007-10-31T11:29:00.000-07:00

On Halloween I say BOO to the Supreme Court.

I already feel like the Supreme Court should be disbanded and their old decisions thrown out. Then we should place new Justices on the Court who are actually non-partisan who will make decisions based on the Constitution rather than their whims. People ask me so you think Brown v. Board of Education should be thrown out? And my answer is we would not have even needed Brown if the Supreme Court would not have made a ridiculous decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. I will spare you the rest of this rant, just know that once you go to law school you realize what a farce the Supreme Court is.

The thing that set me off today is that the Supreme Court granted a stay of the execution scheduled for last night. Whether or not you agree with Capital Punishment, one has to admit the Supreme Court's timing was absurd. The execution date has been set for months now but the Supreme Court comes in 15 minutes before its supposed to happen and grants the stay? What the heck? Do they need that much publicity? The timing forces the victim's family, the prisoner, and the prisoner's family onto a roller coaster of emotions. It dangles closure in front of them like a string and then pulls it away at the last minute. It goes to show you that these rich old law professors have no sense of what their decisions do to the real world. Shame on them.

-J

MSinformed 2007: Election Coverage

2007-10-29T10:36:00.000-07:00

Today we shall start a new tradition. I will make the official Web-land endorsements for the current election. Like many of my entries, some of my picks are well reasoned and some are just based on a whim/good commercial. Endorsed candidates are in bold.

Please pardon any typos, I am not going to edit this post b/c it took too long to write.

Governor:

Haley Barbour- Haley is the incumbent. He has overseen a boom in outside investment in Mississippi that is unparalleled in my life time. He also brought Mississippi through its most difficult time since the civil rights movement- Katrina. Its his 9-11 but unlike Gulliani, Barbour is milking it like the consumate politician he is. Barbour's biggest knocks are that he founded the most successful lobbying firm in Washington and he vetoed the cigarette/grocery tax thing. As far as the lobbying firm, he has all of his money still associated with them in a blind trust meaning no matter what happens there he cannot effect his money. His connections as a Washington power broker are a plus for the state. I do not agree with his veto of the cigarette/grocery tax, but he ran initially saying he would not raise taxes. So he only did what he said he would. That rhetoric is absent from this campaign.

John Arthur Eaves- What can I say? He is running the best campaign he can. If you cannot run on your record, spew some biblical nonsense. His basic platform is that he loves Jesus and Jesus loves him. So if you love Jesus, you should love him. It will work on people whose faith blinds them to any reason. Prayer will never be allowed in public school again. GET OVER IT! He may have some other planks to his platform, but his biblically based rhetoric overpowers them.

Lt. Governor

Phil Bryant- Phil served as Auditor for a number of years and received pretty good reviews. Everyone that I know who has interacted with Bryant while he was auditor believe he was easy to work with and did his job very well. He is among the most respected politicians in the state. His biggest knock against him is that he was state auditor when the beef plant stuff went down. But those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. By that I mean, everyone in office when the beef plant thing went down has mud on their boots.

Jamie Franks- Franks looks like he is about 12 years old. Looking at his website, I agree with many aspects of his platform. His platform does not seem as complete as Phil Bryant's. Franks has been a member of the House of Representatives for 12 years so he is obviously doing something right as far as his constituents are concerned. In this case it really comes down to the positive image of Bryant's ability to work with others and his effectiveness.

Attorney General

Jim Hood- in opposition to Bryant, Hood seems to have a fairly negative image. Many people feel like he was stirring up trouble with the Edgar Ray Killen trial. (He did certainly use it as a photo op). He has also gotten some flack for settling law suits for pennies on the dollar and the attorneys hired to pursue the claims have ties to his fundraising. Well what do you want me to say? He is a democrat. He may have some shady dealings but he is the best candidate. He has a very strong victim rights program and a totally sweet haircut. Plus he has done right by me, so I will support him.

Al Hopkins- I am not really sure why it matters that he only tried cow and pig cases. The AG is an administrator not a lawyer anyway. Hopkins has served his country and his state since 1965 as a member of the guard. This devotion cannot be understated. But, I cannot seem to find anything he stands for. He seems to just stand against Jim Hood. That will not earn my august endorsement.

Secretary of State

Delbert Hosemann- His commercials are funny and I don't really think the Secretary of State matters. So that means he gets my endorsement. Secretary of State oversees elections and consumer protection. I think any candidate would be for legit elections and consumer protection.

Rob Smith- He has some things going for him. First of all, he has served the state for a number of years as a member of the state legislature. Secondly, he looks like Art Garfunkel. Maybe if he did a commercial with Paul Simon, I would re-think. Until then hold the parsely, sage, rosemary, and time.

State Auditor

Stacey Pickering- He is a Pickering and he is from Laurel... Where have I heard this one? Other than the fact that his cousin (I assume) is a member of the US House I don't seem much happening here. I think he will probably win for three reasons: 1) he looks like a guy you want to elect 2) his name 3) he is Republican. However, I have looked at his platform and his plans for the State Auditor's Office and I am not impressed. He calls his platorm the "Contract for Accountability." It is pretty vague. He has goals, but not really any information on how he plans to achieve them.

Mike Sumrall- This guy is a big fat slob. He has said he probably could not pass the CPA exam. He is trying his best not to win. However, looking at his website, he seems to have some very practical ideas on how to increase the effectiveness of the State Auditor's Office. His platform is very nuts and bolts and does not have a catchy title like "Contract for Accountability." But, it does seem that he has a plan to make the office more efficient.

Treasurer

Vote for Tate Reeves, although I don't really like him, and I voted for his opponenet last time. O'Hara pops up every election and runs for something and then disappears into whatever hole he crawled out of. This is a choice between two poor candidates.

Insurance Commissioner

Mike Chaney- Hey he shares his name with one of the most despised people in the entire nation... Mike Vick. HAHA. He and Anderson basically have the same views on the same issues. Vote Republican on this one because the Democrats fought tort reform which raised insurance rates for everyone.

Gary Anderson- He should be the incumbent Treasurer, but in 2003 the state made the wrong choice. Now Gary is just trying to get a piece of the pie. He claims he does not take any contributions from insurance. That could be a plus.

Agriculture Commissioner

Les Riley- he is running on the Constitution Party Ticket. His platfomrm sounds pretty good at first... then he goes nuts. Apparently, God plays a major role (or atleast should) in the Department of Agriculture. God makes rain, not policy.

Ricky Cole- He is the former leader of the Mississippi Democratic party and was run out of the post after the 2003 elections. If he runs the Department of Agriculture that well, we are all in trouble.

Lester Spell- Perhaps, more than anyone in the state government, he has beef on his hands. He was Ag. Commissioner when the Beef Plant stuff happened. According to the Clarion-Ledger he has taken no responsibility for it. Again though, everyone in office the last term had some involvement with the beef plant. He has been Ag. Commissioner since 1996, and I see no real reason to think that should change. Oh yeah and Boys' State City of Spell Best City 1998 respect!

Its the little things.

2007-10-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

Its the little things in life that drive me crazy. Here are a few of them that have raised my ire recently.

First of all, what is the deal with all this Princess Diana junk? Princess Diana is on the news everyday. It appears there is some sort of jury in France having some sort of discussion about the circumstances regarding her death. I know she died 10 years ago, so this is the anniversary, but she is not Disney World. She does not have to celebrate her anniversary all year long. It drives me crazy to see all of this coverage. It started this summer when her kids had a concert to honor her and raise money for her favorite charities. They get a pass. But now one cannot check out at the grocery store without articles in People, the Star, and the National Enquirer about a woman that has been dead for 10 years and is primarily famous for who she married. You know what this reminds me of? Bear Bryant. Alabama fans won't let him die either. For both sets of people... Get over it!

Secondly, Al Gore. Last week Al "Hambone" Gore won the Nobel peace prize. He won for being in a movie. Al "Tater Salad" Gore was in An Inconvenient Truth, a film about the dangers of global warming. Assuming global warming is real and assuming it is caused by humans this movie certainly opened up people's eyes. But seriously, he just hosted the thing. What else has Al "China Buffet 2" Gore done? He has flown around the world a lot in his gas guzzling private plane rather than using a commercial carrier. He uses copious amounts of electricity to power his mansion. Not to mention, Al "the Beefcake" Gore eats more food per day than many Africans consume in a year. Seriously, if cow farts are hurting the ozone, then Al farts have got to be absolutely devastating. I guess its mitigated by the fact that most of his hot air comes out of his mouth.

I guess the Nobel committee is trying to take the crown of inept international organizations from the UN. If so, it has worked, at least until something has to be done about Iran and then the UN will certainly take back its title. Gore has positioned himself to step right into (well he might have to lube up to fit) Jimmy Carter's place when the former President becomes a future peanut crop.

Thirdly, the Red Cross's involvement in the Jena 6 rally. It only takes a brief read of previous posts to realize my support of the students charged in the Jena 6 incident. The Red Cross supported the rally with thousands of bottles of water. The Red Cross is supposed to provide support to humanitarian events. Although the rally was important, it was not a humanitarian event. The Red Cross should have saved their money for the next hurricane, earthquake, or tornado, the NAACP, private citizens, or churches should have contributed to the march. Sure bottles of water are just bottles of water, its really no big deal in the scheme of things. However, many people are withdrawing their support of the Red Cross after this incident. Why donate money to an organization if they spend it on something outside of their mission? Now, when the Red Cross has something to do more within the scope of their mission, they will not have the money to do so. The Red Cross should be so far outside the scope of politics, but in this case, even though it was in support of a just cause, they were too involved.

Finally, on a completely other note, it looks like the Colorado Rockies will make it to the World Series. Wow, that is certainly a sign of the apocalypse (add to the fact that next year Hillary may be elected President and Bill might be UN Secretary General). I fully expect to wake up tomorrow to find all of the Baptists have disappeared in anticipation of the rapture. I had hoped Boston would make it to the World Series also (they still have a chance) because I bet with the thin air in Colorado Big Popi could hit a homerun into McCovey Cove (yes, the one in San Francisco).

That's all I have for now.

-J

Not since Valley Forge...

2007-10-02T15:04:00.000-07:00

Not since Valley Forge has our Republic teetered on the brink of destruction as it does today. People seemed to like my history lessons that accompanied my travelogue, so today I will give a civics lesson.

The word republic comes from the Latin words Res Publica. It means literally "the thing of the people." Even though many people refer to the United States as a democracy, it more fits the definition of a republic. In a true democracy everyone decides what the nation does. In the United States, we elect a President, Senate, and House of Representatives, send them to Washington, and ask them to decide for us. This is a republic. Its based upon the presumptions that a true democracy is impractical and ineffective (see the UN) and the idea that most people are too inept to walk down the street much less decide the direction of a nation. These presumptions are fairly accurate, in my opinion.

Unfortunately, now the people we have put into power are also inept. The American people in their infinite wisdom went to the polls last November and reacted to a perceived inept President. I believe any discussion promoting the President's abilities is a losing one. The American people decided to put the Democrats in power.

For quite sometime now the Democratic Party have been basically known as the bitch (sorry for the language) and tax party. In a brilliant move, they convinced the same American people, who our founders decided were too daft to run the nation, that they would DO something if they were elected to positions of power.

Now I had no problem with that. The Democrats did not do anything really for the last 10 months. I didn't expect them to. Importantly, the American people seem to have realized they were duped by Democrats running for congress. Don't get me wrong. Don't think for one minute that I think the Republicans are the best choice to run the country. I just think the Democrats are the worst choice. That has been validated today.

The Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, Dave Oby, today suggested a war surtax be imposed on the American people. He claims, correctly, that the Treasury is being drained by the war and rather than continue paying for it from the Treasury, tax everyone to pay for it. He further stated "And if you don't like the cost, then shut down the war."

This whole scenario reminds me of the "circle all the things that are wrong in this picture" section of Highlights Magazine. First of all, where does the treasury come from? Pots of gold at the end of rainbows? The tooth fairy? Admission fees from the Smithsonian? State quarter sales? NO! It comes from taxes already. I am not even going to get into the fact that war is probably the number 1 thing our tax dollars should be spent on (say as opposed to giving away condoms to 2nd graders). But, he wants to charge more taxes for something our taxes already pay for. Hey Democrats have always been the party for tax raises. That is not terribly surprising.

What really riles me is the comment "And if you don't like the cost, then shut down the war." The "you" in that statement is literally you and me and every American. Now, is that not why you elected the Democrats, because you wanted to shut down the war? You put them in power to turn around and BLAME you? How in the world are you supposed to shut down the war? Nicole suggests Oby means elect a new president. That would be fine except its 2007. In case Oby has not noticed, there are about 20 people trying to get elected in 2008. If he thinks we need a new president the Democrats should grow a pair and impeach the President.

So why is our Republic in danger? The people (lovingly referred to as "you") did their thing. They decided they wanted new representatives to make the decisions and those new representatives blame the people ("you" again if you thought "you" were off the hook) for not ending the war. Rather than running the government, the Democrats have made a mockery of the people's ability to do the only thing they can do to make a change... vote. That is why our Republic is in danger.

-J

Here is the clip

2007-09-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

It's pretty funny enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfXyEYc2d7c

I am not gonna title this because I don't want to give the subject away

2007-09-19T13:54:00.001-07:00

Every football analyst will tell you that a great running back takes a lot of pressure off of a quarterback. A great running back can take attention, focus, and scrutiny off of a quarterback. So on behalf of Michael Vick, thank you O.J.

What is with this guy? You would think if you got away with murder, you would try to keep your nose clean. But like many great running backs, when most people would cut left, he cuts right. A must for viewing is the press conference his attorney held this morning regarding his arraignment. The lawyer's answers to questions are often humorous and cover the bases (sorry to mix sports metaphors). There's nothing special about that. Pay attention to the guy over his left shoulder. He is wearing a hat that says "I [heart] famous people" and a t-shirt with O.J.'s photo on it. He is also chewing gum and blowing bubbles while having some teeth missing from his mouth. I tried to find a clip on Youtube to no avail. I will try to put a link up in the future.

Now, I am not advocating killing anyone, but you can put O.J. in the group with Michael Jackson, Robert Blake, George Michael, and Gary Coleman. If they would have been killed 15 years ago, they would be remembered very very fondly. They would be borderline legends. But they lived on and now are just punchlines. Think John Lennon, John Belushi, Marvin Gaye, and River Phoenix. They could have turned out nuts but died at the top. Of course you cannot just "remove" everyone who is past their prime because for every O.J. there is a John Travolta or Aerosmith. By all accounts both ended their prime around 1983. Then in the early 1990s, bam Pulp Fiction and Get a Grip. I guess the one good thing about O.J. being such a screw up is that it saved us from Naked Gun 4.

-J

Things on my mind

2007-09-12T14:10:00.000-07:00

Sorry its been a while since I posted anything. I was going to post a few things last week but the blogspot website was down. No excuses though!

First of all, this Senator Craig thing... Who knew there was such a complicated ritual to get some booty in the airport? Joking aside, I could care less if a Senator was gay or not. As long as he/she brings home the bacon and keeps others in check, what does it matter? However, this situation has again shown how most (I certainly can't say all) of the congress are hypocrites. Basically this is exactly the same as the Clinton situation. Everyones big problem with him was that he lied under oath (a minority had a problem that the events took place in the oval office). The crime he was impeached for was lying under oath. Republicans especially jumped all over this. Now one might say the Craig situation is different. But, by entering a guilty plea, and then contending he did nothing, he also lied under oath. Now everyone wants to run him out of town. I personally think Clinton should have been kicked out and so should Senator Craig.

Secondly, what is with this sudden national spurt of racism? Three incidents have come to light in the last couple of weeks. The first is the Jena 6 in Louisiana. Where, after being threatened with nooses after eating lunch under the tree where the white kids ate lunch, 6 young men exploded in a rage and beat the snot out of one of the tormentors. The second is this nasty story coming out of West Virginia where a couple of white people kidnapped and assaulted a black woman. Their torture regimen included making her drink from the toilet and eat feces (in all fairness this has not been explicitly referred to as being racially motivated). Thirdly, here at Ole Miss, a black kid was kicked out of the DKE house, called racially insensitive names, and knocked down some stairs.

Now, I try to keep this blog G rated (when you have as many readers as I do, you cannot afford to alienate anyone), but what the hell is wrong with these people? Look at a calendar, its 2007. I generally think race relations are good and racism is very limited, at least publicly. Then something like this comes up. I guess the positive to come out of this is that 50 years ago, if the Jena 6 would have lashed out, they would have been hung from that tree where as now, the charges have already been reduced from attempted murder to a lesser charge and people around the country are donating money to their defense. Also here at Ole Miss, various student boards and college officials are investigating the matter and have promised to get to the bottom of the problem. Of course, it is well publicized what would have happened at Ole Miss 50 years ago. After all, only whites were allowed to attend at that time. So that is what we can take from this experience. Where as years ago racism was not only tolerated, but supported and protected by the government and society, now racism is relegated to the fringes of society and ones own personal thoughts. Like Pandora's Box, events like these show us that all evils have been released into the world. Sometimes, it is difficult to sift through it all to find that hope still resides here.

-J

A Strange Day

2007-08-27T16:40:00.000-07:00

Today has been kinda strange for me.

First off, I have am currently working at the Oxford US Attorney's office as an extern. Today, at work, no one, at least that I could tell was abuzz. This would normally not be a surprise except for that the Attorney General resigned today. I have never seen a office so nonchalant about their boss quitting. It just seemed odd.

Secondly, this made me really do some reflecting today: http://clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070827/NEWS/708270365/1001/news

Pete Collins was a State Trooper here in Mississippi. He was in great demand as a motivational/alcohol abuse speaker when I was in college and high school. Between the two, I probably saw him speak about 5 times total. He seemed very sincere. He seemed like someone who cared enough about children to warn them of the risks of alcohol consumption. He was very soft spoken and sounded very assuring. His most poignant stories, were of telling parents in the middle of the night that their son had died in a car wreck and his failed rescue of a little girl. Every time he told the story about the little girl he choked up when he said "Darlin, I'm not going to let you die" only to leave the car and return to find her dead.

A couple of years ago, Pete Collins was arrested for criminal groping of a minor. It was a 14 year old girl. I was never a big fan of my high school administration or the administration of my college, so I was pretty amused that they had egg on their face. How embarrassed they must have been to know they opened up their school to a pedophile. And then, a couple of days later, I just forgot all about it.

Last week Pete Collins was convicted of his crime and sentenced to 10 years in prison and labeled a sex offender. Sunday, he committed suicide in his cell.

So now I have a mixture of guilt, sadness, and justice. I think that first offense of any sexual crime against a child should probably result in the death penalty. Most of the people that abduct and kill children started with groping or molestation. So to a degree, I feel justice has probably been served.

Pete Collins at one time was on top of the world. If you read the link, you found he was honored by the State of Mississippi and President Clinton. He probably saved some lives with his alcohol speeches, and no doubt he served the state for a number of years on the Highway Patrol. Yet his fall from grace was so far and so profound. Seeing a very good, if not great man, fall like that, to see a hero (I am sure he was to someone) be reduced to meager lustful human causes some sadness.

Finally, guilt. I feel guilty for feeling a sense of victory over my foes regardless of the human cost. I obviously had nothing to do with what Pete Collins did, but I should not have reveled in it. I don't usually take victory in the personal tragedies of others, but this time I did. For that, I feel guilty.

-J

Our Future Overlords

2007-08-24T06:40:00.000-07:00

Get used to it. This is the future.* The Roomba is vacuum cleaner that goes around ones home at a certain time and cleans the entire floor and returns to its base to deposit the dirt, grime, and other refuse. Sounds good right? Wrong.

Have we not learned anything from movies like the Terminator? Here is the problem. Current Roomba models have something in them that tells them when they have just enough juice left to get back to their charger. Then they go back to their charger and replenish power and return to work. It knows when it is about to die and avoids it. It has a self preservation instinct. Is that not what distinguishes animals from machines? Most other home appliances seem to go out of their way to break after their warranty expires, but the Roomba actually keeps itself alive.

Now that Roomba has self preservation capabilities, its only a matter of time before they gain intelligence. The Roomba's programming forces it to eliminate dirt, grime, and other refuse. How long will it take Roomba to realize there is one person causing the mess that it has to clean up every day? The next logical step, which governs the actions of our future overlords, is that to completely end the mess for good, the source must be ended. Then our robot overlords will probably get together and enslave humanity.

It will start probably with owners waking up in the middle of the night to find their Roombas staring at them while they sleep. Then little things, like furniture moved to new places likely to cause the owner to trip and fall. They would be patient, and when the time was right they would strike. The Roomba would easily climb up on a person lying on the ground place their vacuum over their face and suffocate the mess maker.

Until now we had a defense. The one weakness was apparently rug tassels. Roombas would get stuck on rug tassels like a trespasser on barbed wire. In order to become mobile again, they had to have help from their human handlers. I read yesterday, where the people that manufacture the Roomba have eliminated this safeguard. Now the Roomba can solve that problem also.

With no natural defenses from robots, its only a matter of time now before we are done for. We have no chance to defend ourselves against our future overlords. After all, we are too lazy to even vacuum our own homes.

-J

*please visit http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Roomba_original.jpg for photo licensing information.

Is this really a good thing?

2007-08-20T16:55:00.000-07:00

Check this story out.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,293825,00.html

Sure this product sounds amazing. I had heard about it sometime in the mid nineties. Then it was being billed as the miracle product of the future. It seems as if today it has become more practical and cheaper to produce. Therefore, it is positioned to jump into the mainstream and really change the way things are done. But this post is titled "Is this really a good thing?" Maybe not.

This product is basically the next penicillin, except not a drug. Like penicillin, the frozen smoke can cure everything from home insulation to satellites to body armor. That's where the problem arises. Think back in history. Cavemen threw sticks at each other so people started wearing furs and leather as armor. To breach this armor humanity invented swords. To combat that bronze and later steel body armor were created. Arrows were invented to find the gaps in this armor so plate and chain mail were invented. To combat this, guns were brought from the far east. Eventually the machine gun was invented and tanks were created for protection. So tank busting weapons had to be invented. This goes on of course for another 100 years leading us up to today.

Frozen smoke can apparently be used as armor that can protect against a bomb blast. So what frightens me is what will come next? If it is going to combat this 21st Century technology; it must be quite difficult to fathom today. It will no doubt be a future problem.

Just food for thought.

Personally, I think if this stuff can protect against bomb blasts the government should start putting it in helmets, on humvees, and whatever else it needs to go on YESTERDAY. Hey, you could even line the highways of Iraq with it like concrete dividers. If this stuff really works this way, then strap it on our boys.

Oh yeah, and nobody gets the free book.

-J

Uh Oh!

2007-08-15T09:49:00.000-07:00

Well I wrote my post on Barry Bonds a couple of days ago, and now I see on Sports Center that Barry has decided to sue any private citizen that claims he has used illegal substances or evaded his income taxes. I did not write anything about his taxes, frankly I don't really care whether or not he paid them. Since I did not write about that, I cannot take full credit for Barry's recent threat, but I think it has to be more than a coincidence that I wrote one day about him and the next day he makes his statement.

But I really deserve none of the credit, it goes to you readers of web-land. When a butterfly flaps its wings in Oxford, it does cause a tsunami in San Francisco. And do not worry my long time fan(s), I shall not forget you. You have helped me make Barry Bonds quake in his ever expanding shoe (allegedly). To honor your commitment, if you comment on this post, when my compilation is published, I will give you a free signed copy. After all, why pay for something you have already read.

-J

Oh Barry...

2007-08-12T18:47:00.000-07:00

What a topic for my first post back in the USA. The great American pass time seems to be the perfect topic. So...

As of this posting, Barry Bonds is sitting at 758 home runs for his career. This makes him the all time home run king surpassing Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714). Many, at least in the media, see this as the great record in sports. I personally think the hit streak of Joe DiMaggio or consecutive games played streak of Cal Ripken are the least likely to ever be broken. At any rate, it is quite an impressive feat to hit that many home runs in a career.

Many people have a problem with Barry Bonds holding this record. There exists a fairly common consensus that Barry Bonds has had some "outside" help in achieving this record. I pretty much agree that something is going on. Like Jim Rome likes to point out, grown men do not normally increase in head or shoe size. Barry obviously has.

Should the home run record of Barry Bonds have an asterisk? Should he be dismissed as a chemically enhanced abomination? Nah. The fact of the matter is the "outside" help did not make him connect bat to ball. The "outside" help may have made a few home runs out of fly outs to the warning track. "Outside" help certainly can take credit for the number of canoes in McCovey Cove. The fact is that Barry Bonds was already going to be one of the best hitters of his generation, if not ever. So he is about the width of two Barry Bonds from 1993. He is still a great hitter. As far as whether or not he cheated. Yeah, he cheated, and so did almost everyone else. If he were alone, that would be one thing, but the pitchers pitching against them and the outfielders climbing up the walls to rob home runs also took them.

In the end, none of this really matters anyway. Bonds will probably have the shortest reign as all time home run king of all. A-Rod seems poised to take the title and if not, Pujols seems like his career will soon put him in striking distance.

Exiting the Lawful Allegiance

2007-08-01T16:08:00.001-07:00

Well here we are. It has been six weeks of some school and a great deal of enjoyment. I was walking across the gravel here at Downing College a few days ago and realized I was ready to go home. The most recent Bon Jovi song, which has been a hit on the country charts, has a line that goes, 'I'm a hometown boy born a rolling stone." I think I am the opposite. I was born in Cleveland, lived in Starkville, started school in Fredricksburg, Virginia, grew up in Meridian, I went to undergraduate school and worked in Jackson, attended law school in Oxford, and spent six weeks in Cambridge, UK, but I will always be a hometown boy. At one point I described my summer in Washington, D.C. as very nice, but I felt like I needed to go home to recharge my batteries. Well, I am down to 1 bar.

To Nicole's credit, she has wanted to be home for a couple of weeks now. I think that as we think of ourselves as cosmopolitan, the reality is that we are at our best when we are in familiar surroundings in comfortable places. It took longer to warm up to Nicole's wish to return home than I am sure it will be to warm up once we return to Jackson.

Our trip has been one that can only happen once in a lifetime. I believe we have truly made the most of the opportunity we were given. Did we expand our horizions? Most likely. Did we enjoy ourselves? Most definately. But, now the end is near. The trip has to end. If it didn't end, it would merely be life rather than an adventure. In order to truly enjoy it, it must conclude, and so it has. We will be entering a decompression chamber of sorts tomorrow, staying at a Holiday Inn. Then it will be on to Charlotte, N.C. where we will be one time zone away from the home one can only appreciate after being away for so long.

Even though the trip ended, the blog will go on. It will however change from a travelogue to just a log of my thoughts and events that strike me in the world. As a warning, if those reading the travel updates are bereft of a sense of humor or common sense, you probably will want to discontinue reading now.

Something For Everyone

2007-07-24T12:10:00.000-07:00

Kinda a random addition other than its on Loch Ness. I guess you have to bring your own sheets to stay in this hotel.

Loch Ness and the Castle

2007-07-24T12:04:00.000-07:00

Here again are some pictures of the Loch and Urquhart Castle. As well as a picture of Nicole searching for Nessie. See if you can find her in her blue sweat shirt.

The Highlands

2007-07-24T11:57:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of the scenery and of Nicole enjoying the scenery.

The Highlands May be the Greatest Place on Earth

2007-07-24T11:01:00.000-07:00

I will include a few separate posts about our trip to Scotland because I want to caption the pictures. This post is just narrative.

Glasgow, Scotland is an interesting place. It was really the birthplace of the industrial revolution, being the home of James Watt, the inventor of the steam engine. It is now a former industrial town looking for an identity in the computer age. The town is not as majestic, at least that's what I have heard, as Edinburgh. It is charming in its own right though. The Clyde River runs through the town and is where the name Clydesdale for the horses comes from. They actually have some living in one of the many public city parks. There is a restaurant there (also in Edinburgh) called The Mussel Inn that is phenomenal. As a person from a Gulf state I thought I had had the best oysters the world has to offer. I was very wrong. The ones that I had, fresh from the frigid waters off the coast of Scotland were simply amazing.

People of Ireland rejoice! Although Irish have a reputation for being pugnacious drunks, I think the people of Glasgow have them beaten. We saw a bunch of people get arrested, guys outside a bar punching each other, and of course the Harry Potter hecklers. Yes there we were standing on Argyle street in a que about 150 people deep and every car that drove by had something clever to yell at us. But, Nicole got her book.

Onward to the Highlands.

We took a coach tour (bus) of the Highlands and to Loch Ness and Inverness, the Capitol of the Scottish Highlands. I will attach some pictures but words cannot describe the beauty of the rolling hills, mountains, and rivers. In many fields the remains of long fallen walls dotted the countryside cutting a straight line through an otherwise asymmetric landscape. There are easily more sheep than people. At times the hillsides are a brilliant purple color from the blooming heather. At other times they are various shades of green and yellow from the grasses and grains growing on them.

The history of the area, as many people know, is bathed in bloodshed. Clan wars, viking invasions, English incursions, and civil wars all took place on this lush landscape. It is really amazing to think of all the history that has taken place. I can imagine those sheep, fields, and decaying brick walls could all tell very fascinating stories.

Our tour through the Highlands was highlighted by our trip to Loch Ness. The lake is cold. It is deeper than the North Sea. It is also very choppy. Since it is so deep, the water is very dark. So, every wave holds the promise to be Nessie until it crests and the white foam betrays the imagination. Also Castle Urquhart stands over looking the deepest point of the Loch. It is really a fantastic setting.

I also ate haggis. For those of you uninitiated, its basically sheep guts chopped up with oats and baked. Its actually better than it sounds, but its not really that good. It was mostly just a way to use an entire sheep, as it also used to be baked in a sheep's stomach.

Scotland was great, I would say if you have the chance to either go to Scotland, England, or Ireland, choose Scotland.

Stay tuned for pics.

Cheers

And thus our heroes return to London...

2007-07-23T05:36:00.000-07:00

Here is part of the gang returning to the train station after attending the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple. From top to bottom they are: Chaz, Kevin, Nicole, and Kirsten. I am taking the picture and Kristen and Christy had already returned to Cambridge.

First, I must say, there are no Harry Potter spoilers contained within this blog. Secondly, and of less importance, I am sure, Nicole and I got to meet both Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Scalia.

Both men were very friendly. They genuinely seemed to be without pretense or any arrogance at all. Its funny because we would never get to meet either of them at home, so we had to come to England to meet members of our own Supreme Court. We did not get a chance to take a picture with either of them. Scalia is notoriously anti-recordings, but Roberts seemed amenable. Unfortunately, he was called away by the staff as I was tapping him on the shoulder to get a photo.

Chief Justice Roberts was there to be named an Honorary Master Bencher of the Middle Temple. The Middle Temple holds its connection with the United States in very high regard. A number of benchers of the Middle Temple signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Sir. Walter Raleigh and Sir. Francis Drake, as I mentioned previously, were also of the Middle Temple and very much associated with the exploration of the Americas. It also helps that England and the United States have essentially the same legal system. In this vein, a number of Chief Justices of the United States Supreme Court have been made Honorary Benchers. Chief Justice Roberts is now among those. He was very humorous in both his speeches and in casual conversation.

When I met Justice Scalia, I was in awe. To someone such as myself, he is a rock star. I acted like a 12 year old girl meeting Justin Timberlake or something. I gushed praises upon him; telling him I am a follower of his judicial ethos, how enjoyable his dissents were, and how I wished he were more in the majority than the minority. Unlike when I met a certain other Judge, who shall remain nameless (she may have taught Nicole etiquette), who believed it was a privilege just to be in her presence, Justice Scalia was very gracious and thanked me and told me that he wrote his dissents for the future. He always knows the right things to say.

After a little more gushing and lushing (the champagne was very nice) it was off to dinner. At the meal, we befriended Eugene, a Barrister of the Middle Temple. I know his last name, but in respect, I will keep it to myself. Afterwards, Eugene invited us to his favorite London pub for a couple of pints. Then we returned to Cambridge on the last train of the night. It was an amazing experience and we met a number of nice people.

Well, stay tuned tomorrow for details about our trip to Scotland. There may be a picture of Nessy involved...

Cheers

* I don't know why blogspot is jamming this all together, I put spaces between the paragraphs. Sorry.

Out and About Part II

2007-07-18T08:11:00.000-07:00

Outside of Cambridge toward a small village, there is a cemetary dedicated to the American airmen stationed over here from World War II. All of the pictures today are from my visit to the cemetary. Nicole had a bout with some allergies so she did not make it. The photos are of a gentleman named Frank Litton from Colorado, who flew out of Cambridge and never returned. The pictures of the angel and the bombers is from the ceiling in the small chapel at the cemetary. The final one pretty much speaks for itself.

This cemetary is certainly modest when compared to some of the ones in France, but, it is impressive none the less to see American troops honored on foreign soil. It certainly does not seem like there is even a chance of that in this day and time.

I got a haircut today. I was not going to get one while in England, because Dale in Oxford cuts my hair for $12. But, since I am going to dine with Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Scalia tomorrow, I thought I should get one (i.e. Nicole told me I had to get one). We are very much looking forward to going back to the Middle Temple. It is a magnificant place that is full of history.

This weekend we are going to Scotland to tour the Highlands and see Loch Ness. Well, I am at least, Nicole is going to go to Scotland and buy Harry Potter. I fear that although she will be there with me in body; she will not be there in mind. Of course I will report on the sightseeing part of the trip next week.

Cheers

Londinium

2007-07-16T12:52:00.000-07:00

Lots of people ask me, "Jeremy, how do you decide what pictures go on the blog and which ones don't?" I reply, "Sure, I could put a photo of Big Ben up there, but then Big Ben is not really that interesting. So, I put up pictures that interest me and thusly should interest other people." That should explain why you see before you a picture of a rock under glass, me posed to look as if I am wearing a helmet, an innocuous table, Nicole and a Beefeater (well that one is pretty touristy thing), and a bit of masonry.

These are of course from our trip to London, and since I named this post Londinium, its probably best to start from the end. Londinium is of course the Roman name for London (how clever). The picture of the bit of masonry is none other than the original Roman city wall. It is now located on the grounds of the Tower of London. That is also where this Beefeater that posed with Nicole was. These guys are amazing, they are all former military (other than Navy). They give tours and such. They are very informative and funny. Sorry no photos of the Crown jewels, photography was forbidden. Photography is however permitted at the British Museum, which is where the two pictures behind glass were taken (what a great segue, I personally think the segues have been sublime in this particular piece).

The picture of me and the helmet (Celtic, not Viking) is just me being silly. Nicole and I actually had the idea at the same time and so there it is. We are often quite good like that. The other picture is one of the two coolest things I have ever personally seen (the other is also on the page but we shall get to that in a bit). It is the Rosetta Stone. Arguably, the greatest archelogical discovery in history because it allowed the translations of hieroglyphics. Its discovery is also very interesting... If you don't know it, you should look it up.

The other picture, of the table with fruit and lemonade on it is the other coolest thing I have ever seen. It is from the Middle Temple (kinda like a guild/country club for lawyers and certain others since the middle ages). Under the table cloth is a table made out of the hatch of the Golden Hind. That was Sir. Francis Drake's ship when he was the first captain to circumnavigate the globe (Magellan died before he made it all the way around). Seriously, how cool is that? Ok, you're right, Nicole felt the same way. Still though, its a little cool.

Thats about it as far as the tour of London is concerned. By the way, we will get all of those other touristy pictures developed and bring them with us when we come to visit. We also got to see Spamalot (totally hilarious, go see it) and Les Miserables (for reactions see my story about the Golden Hind and exchange Les Miserables for Golden Hind and transpose my name with Nicole's)(I'll put it like this, if I hadn't had to go to the bathroom during the first act, I would have fallen asleep).

Speaking of the French, (again with the segues, I must, at this point, pat myself on the back) they are lame. Our professor, Mr. Hopkins is very fond of saying, "Paris is great except for the French." I feel the same way about London. London is great, except for the French. They seem to like to stand in doorways, push their ways through crowds, and smell bad. They are uncivilized. They wear clothes that are a mixture of Mad Max, the 1980s, and some runway in Paris. It is a shame that inorder to save the world from the Nazi menace, the US and UK had to save France as well.

I guess thats enough for now.

Cheers

Technical Difficulties

2007-07-11T09:20:00.000-07:00

Web-land has just experienced its first technical difficulties with my previous post. I feel like I now know how a parent feels when their child loses their first tooth or something. Hopefully, I have solved it. I had to take the pics off of the side bar and insert them normally. Fingers crossed!

Out and About

2007-07-11T03:52:00.000-07:00

I thought since its about the middle of the trip, some observations were in order. First a note- I am trying something different with the pictures. they are now on the right hand column to keep the posts smaller. They are of Kings College here in Cambridge (more on that later) and a couple from the Cambridge Botanical Garden.

Lets talk about the bathrooms here (I am sure many are suprised it took me this long to bring this topic up). Almost every sink has a different faucet for hot and cold water. The cold is frigid and the hot is scalding. It makes washing one's hands quite difficult. Paper towels to dry ones hands are also a rare commodity, opting instead for the air driers. The toilets have very deep basins with little water in them initially. This would lead one to believe that they are in to the whole low-flow thing to conserve water. That would be a mistake because upon the instant of flushing a great tidal surge comes from some unknown place with a teriffic swishing noise.

Also in the realm of food, somethings translate well and others don't. From our end I can tell you this, the Irish Stew at Fenians in Jackson tastes quite like the Irish Stew in Ireland, so I recommend checking it out. The English do very well with hamburgers, pizza, nachos, and many other typical American foods. Chicken wings however are lost in translation. They are often tasty but not really what we would consider "traditional" back home. At one place, the hot wings tasted like they were covered in marinara sauce. Which is not a bad way to eat chicken though it was unexpected.

Nicole points out another thing the English do exceptionally better than we do... sandwiches. They sell them pre-packaged like they do in gas stations back home. In contrst to back home where these sandwiches are to be avoided, everyone eats them here. They are very good also. The more mundane flavors are BLT and Club. Many are more extravagant. Some contain seafood, prawns, salmon, and the like (we have avoided these).

Around Cambridge is very nice. A couple of days ago I went to the Botanical Gardens. They were very interesting. Lots of flowers, trees, and plants. In one place they were even growing sugar peas and squash. They also had a hot house which had pineapples, limes, and cacti. That was an odd sight in England. Yesterday, we went to see the King's College Choir. The chapel is an amazing gothic structure made up of basically stone and stained glass. They had some of the most intricate stained glasses I have ever seen. The choir sang wonderfully, but the service was difficult to understand because of the echo off of the stone. I can only imagine how that place looks decked out for Christmas. We are starting to explore Cambridge and finding it well worth exploring.

Cheerio

St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin is... Anglican!?!

2007-07-09T05:53:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Dublin was fantastic. Nicole and I agree the only problem with it (other than the hostel maybe) is that we only had three days there. We spent the whole of our time in Dublin and were not able to go see the rest of the island, which is a shame because it gets exemplary reviews also.

First the ONE negative. DON'T STAY IN HOSTEL'S. If you think dirty hippies in the States are bad, throw them in with Euro-trash and thats pretty much the clientele. Our room was Spartan to say the best. We did however have a shower and about 50 wall power outlets (why unkempt hippies have that much electronic gagetry, I do not know) which is better than our room here in Cambridge. The thing that really soured us on the hostel was the Frenchman that repeatedly tried to enter our room. After his fourth attempt at entering, I finally yelled at him to leave us alone. To which he replied, "Sorry.' Thats all that needs to be said about the hostel experience.

We got to do a lot in Dublin. Here is a short list: National Museum, National Gallery, City Wide Bus Tour, Old Jameson Distillery, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Temple Bar Area, Riverdance, Phoenix Park, and the Dublin Zoo.

Dublin was founded by Vikings in the 10th Century. Eventually the English began to exert more and more control over it and by the reign of the Normans, it was basically an English territory. George III (yes that one) exerted a great deal of control over Ireland, as well as successive monarchs. Ireland became independant in 1921 after a series of bloody uprisings. Most of the rebels are now remembered as heroes and most of the English infrastructure has been renamed to show that. Then they went and sold their souls to the EU devil, and gave up many rights that sovereign goverments enjoy.

The National Gallery had pretty much typical art gallery stuff. Some notable artists featured were (and please pardon my spelling): Carravaggio, Rembrandt, El Greco, Titian, Picasso, Monet, Rubens. The National Museum was pretty amazing. It included lots of gold the ancient Gaelic peoples buried as offerings to whatever gods lived in the peat bogs. It also had a number of Viking things including weapons and armor. The best part though was they had 4 guys that died centuries ago and were left in the bogs that became mummified. They didn't have the whole of any of them and they looked kinda like wallet leather. But still, how many dead guys does the Smithsonian have?

The zoo was also amazing. Unlike here at home, the tigers and leopards are kept apart from the crowd by a 6 inch thick piece of plexi-glass. This allowed for some extreme closeups, and a thorougly amazed Nicole. Also, the Dublin zoo is known as the most fertile zoo in the world so many of the animals had babies. We got to see a baby elephant, gorilla, African wild piglets, and a number of others.

On a side note there was also a pro-life rally going on in the middle of Dublin on Saturday. Apparently abortion is illegal in Ireland, and they want the Prime Minister to keep his promise to make sure it remains that way. No comment, just an interesting aside.

Near where the rally was taking place there is a 500+ foot Millennium Spire which was actually built in 2003. The city payed out the nose for it but it was said to be a self cleaning monument. The Dublin city council paid 40K Euros to clean it last month. I have included that in my pictures.

Finally, we get to St. Patrick's Cathedral, which is Anglican. There is no Catholic Cathedral in the city of Dublin. Its a long story and I have rambled for a while already. While in the cathedral, we found uncle Caesar's plaque honoring him. They also had some very beautiful stained glass. It is an amazing structure, but if you want to see Mary, you had better stick with the St. Patrick's in NYC.

Happy Independence Day from the Mother Land

2007-07-04T05:52:00.000-07:00

Our very pro American professor today said that mentioning the phrase "July 4th" is treason. He did however signal appreciation for our return to the "lawful allegiance" by being here in England. He was joking on both counts. We actually have plans for the celebration. A pub here on the street we all live on is having a party that lasts until midnight. The pub is apparently owned by some of the former owners of TGI Fridays. I was going to try to mastermind a cook out before the Snug decided to profit from our patrotism in a foreign land.

In honor of the day here are some of my favorite lines from the Declaration of Independence.

"When a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object, evidences a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government , and to provide new Guards for their future security."

"A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people."

and of course

"When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands, which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation."

Cheers!

Bristol, Bath, and Stonehenge

2007-07-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

Our great adventure of driving a car in England is now over. Nicole and I returned the car to the rental place yesterday with no damage. The car came very near going back to the rental office on the back of a recovery vehicle. Needless to say, I have cancelled our car in Scotland.

In no uncertain terms, the English drive like madmen. They have such a lovely country, but they drive too fast and erraticly to allow any enjoyment. I have little doubt that the average English driver, if dropped into a NASCAR on race day, would finish in the top ten. They are not afraid to put you into a wall. Further, it takes a special kind of insanity to drive a motorcycle over here. Often they ride either way on the dividing line in the middle of traffic at very high speeds.

The English road system is obviously ancient. Many of the paths follow old Roman routes and most others were built for a time in which heavy traffic referred to the size of ones horse. Also, the population of England is 60 million in a land area the size of California. All of these elements come together to form a web of single lane streets for two way traffic, poorly marked city areas, sharp curves, steep elevations, and of course, the crazy drivers. I do not miss my driving experience. Neither does Nicole, although she operated as an excellent navigator.

Driving did give us the opportunity to explore Bristol, the birthplace of America. Bristol is a port town set in a natural harbor where a great deal of trading and exploring ventures set out. We got to go to the British Museum of Empire and Commonwealth. Nicole and I were very interested to see that in the 1950s there was a Bristol Bus Boycott, similar to the one in Montgomery. Bristol is nicknamed the birthplace of America because many of the ships to and from the new world called it home. It was also the launching ground for John Cabot.

Next we went to Bath. For a history nerd like myself, it was spectacular. The Roman baths were very interesting, but the water tasted a bit metallic. After 3 hours touring the Roman Baths, we went to the Museum of Costume. It was lame. It was kinda like the first ladies' exhibit at the Smithsonian, but none of the clothes had a famous connection, they were just clothes... Nicole loved it.

Finally, we visited Stonehenge. It rises out of the English countryside, adding something of a skyline to a rural setting. Surrounded by hosts of guardian sheep (and the ropes put up by the English trust), the gray towering stone strikes a great contrast to the sloping verdant landscape. Today it still raises more questions than can be answered.

Our trip out west was magnificent (minus the car thing). We look forward this weekend to going to Ireland.

Now for Something Completely Different

2007-06-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

Now as I have had time to sleep and my jet lag is waining, I have begun to notice little differences around the place. There is obviously a heavy accent. Also, we finally found a store that sold school supplies, and they have only either 4 ring or 2 ring binders... totally crazy. The Chinese food is also very different, which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I have no new pictures to post.

I have certainly tried to do the English diet thing. Last night I had fish and chips for dinner at a local pub. That same pub informed us they will be having a 4th of July party, which is probably not very patriotic for them but makes good monetary sense since there is about 50 Americans living across the street. The pinnacle so far though of my English dining experience is that today for lunch, I ate kidney pie. It was not bad. One guy got it, and then when I explained to him that it was not composed of kidney beans but the actual organ, he looked like he had to hold it back.

Anyway thats the update.

We've Arrived!

2007-06-25T13:46:00.000-07:00

This is where we are living. Ours is the one with the light on.

This is a lawn mower with a Taz doll on it. The interesting thing about it is that at Cambridge only Fellows (professors) are allowed to walk on the grass. So, I am not allowed on but Taz is on it.

Well after about 9 hours in the air, 4 hours on a bus, and 3 minutes in a cab we have arrived in Cambridge. So far, England looks fairly similar to the US. There are some minor differences in asthetics. One of which is that there seem to be cows in very random places. We passed a small grouping of them in Cambridge. No classes are going on right now (other than ours), but Cambridge is still bustling. The weather is in the high 50s and low 60s pretty much throughout the day. It rains a lot here. It is mostly light I have yet to see a heavy rain. The accommodations are Spartan. We share 1 shower with the entire house. When we signed up for the program we expected to share it with at the most 2 other people. Some people have showers in there rooms, yet we all paid the same fee for rooms. Oh well. The food is not that bad especially for cafeteria type dining. What they call bacon looks and tastes quite like country ham. For lunch I had chili con carne. It was pretty good since I never expected to see that in England. It was however the first time I had eaten chili with clove in it. Finally, the people here are very polite. Those of us from the Hospitality State have nothing on them.

Photo Upload

2007-06-20T14:01:00.000-07:00

Since I had to figure out how to post photos, I figured these shots from a Hawaii sunset would be nice. All of these photographs were taken by me. Feel free to use these photographs in any not for profit use.

Under Construction

2007-06-06T18:59:00.000-07:00

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