Last night, while at Joseph Beth Booksellers in Lexington, Kentucky I bought a book and a magazine. While waiting my turn to check out, I noticed that the three displays closest to the main checkout were quite an odd collection of topics… and then I thought about it and decided that the person responsible for the setup of these displays may be making their own statement.

I’ll let you be the judge (I got photos of each of the three for your review):

First there was this one…

then this one followed…

and the third (and last one) before the checkout…

Accident, irony or overt political statement? You be the judge.

To say I’m pleased with the election results would be a lie.

I’m deeply concerned about this country, probably more so than I have ever been in any given election. I get the feeling that many people voted the way they did because they saw it as a way to shirk their responsibilities.

The thing that keeps coming to mind is the lady who, at the celebratory victory rally, said that she was glad she no longer had to worry about her mortgage or her car payment.

I’m assuming she intends to KEEP both of these items, she just doesn’t want to pay for them anymore. So, by default (isn’t that a great pun?!?) those of us who are responsible and DO pay our bills will get to pay hers as well? Maybe our children and grandchildren can kick in to support (with interest) the quality of life to which she has become accustomed, but no longer desires to afford?

It reminds me of the time when I was in a grocery line with my mother in Danville, Kentucky. The lady in front of us was wearing diamond rings and an “Aigner” coat (which was all the rage at that time), a matching purse and shoes.

These were things that we couldn’t justify (my mother has always been so practical — thank goodness!). When she tried to check out the dog food with her food stamps, she was told that it wasn’t permitted. Her response? She said her dog preferred hamburger anyway — and promptly left the line, went to the meat department, got a 10 pound roll of ground beef and returned to be checked out — while we all stood in awe, mouths agape.

I think that was a pivotal moment in my development. I was probably 12 or 13. It has colored my glasses about welfare programs and these glasses aren’t rosy. I feel that what we have here, is an even bigger version of the same mentality. Put simply, it makes me angry.

When are people going to be responsible and quit expecting the government to parent them?

Some of the propositions that passed also alarm me. I really don’t believe it’s the government’s job to dictate morality, define “family” and determine what is ok in our bedrooms. Apparently, that puts me squarely in the minority these days, too.

Most of my clients and friends are fiscally and politically conservative (with a few notable exceptions). One of my friends commented today, “Welcome to the USSA.” I have to wonder if he’s right.

On another note, the “Civilian National Security Force” scares the crap out of me. It simply does.

So, I’m sitting quietly here in my home office, wondering why I’ve spent my life paying my bills, meeting my obligations (even when people who supposedly share those obligations don’t do their part to help), trying to stay out of debt and avoiding “welfare” type programs — even during those really hard times in my life when I qualified.

I’ve always believed that freedom mattered more than security. I’ve believed in making your own way and cutting back when times were lean. I’ve always been capable of making the tough decisions. I’ve tried to pass this on to my children (whether or not I did this successfully is yet to be seen.)

I wonder “what’s the use?” when people who didn’t behave responsibly are getting bailouts. Like another one of my friends recently quipped, “Where’s my friggin’ financial bailout?!?”

*Not that I’d want one if it cost me my freedom or my privacy — or made me beholden to someone as a result, mind you*

We aren’t educating our children in our schools anymore, I worry that now all we have to educate them is our example… and if that’s the case, we are probably totally screwed.

I think I’m going to go try to find my old weather-beaten copy of 1984 for a quick re-read. I think it’s time.

Orson Scott Card on the Fannie/Freddie melt-down: “Would the last honest reporter please turn on the lights?” | BloodhoundBlog: National real estate marketing and technology blog | Realtors and real estate, mortgages, lending, investments.

Interesting blog quoting an excellent author on the current state of US affairs.

I just watched a video which covered many of the things I’ve been contemplating lately. I’ve always been an identity protection freak. I have been guilty of making a scene in public when someone tried to demand my social security number (when I knew it wasn’t necessary) before offering me a service or looking up an account.

I’ve been a freak about other things too…

When the education system wasn’t up to snuff, I pulled my kids out and educated them myself. If a store didn’t provide me with the service I needed, I walked out and spent my money (even if it cost more) elsewhere.

All of these things did little to change the system, the situation or the environment.

Mostly they just changed me into a skeptic (usually a pissed-off one) and complicated my life. It seems that nearly everything I did served only to make life harder. Some were worth the added complication (like my children), but most were not worth the price they exacted from my time, my tranquility, and the quality of my life.

I’ve recently decided to quit trying to change the world.

I’ve quit trying to control my environment. Instead, I’ve decided to only avoid being controlled. That may sound like the same thing, but it’s not. Trying to control other individuals and situations is always futile and is usually rude. Refusing to let others control you is difficult but possible and it doesn’t have to be anti-social.

First, I have to determine “what is me?”

Is my personal information “me” or is that only a series of labels people/companies/entities put on me? Are my thoughts “me?” Is my video collection and taste in media an identifying marker of “me?” — and should I remove my information from Pandora? Is how I’m spending my time this second me? Is that information “private” or is it something to be shared on Twitter? Are the people who are my friends private — or do I add them to Facebook? Where I go and what I do… is that something my iPhone should be allowed to track? A couple years ago, I’d say no to all of the above. And, I would have said it loudly.

Is my journal me? Are my musings (like this one) private thoughts, or should I blog them? Am I communicating and being more open (the way I like my software and the way I’d like my government to be) or am I divulging my own personal details to a degree that I’m too visible? Will I regret the new level of transparency I’ve started to adopt?

I’ve spent much of my life jousting windmills in the name of freedom. I’m tired. Even more important, I’m not sure that what I thought I was gaining is achievable or even desirable. And isn’t this how societies change… with broad, sweeping apathy following exhaustion? I think we are there.

Exhausted — politically, philosophically, personally

I’m not interested in being militant for its own sake (that’s the game for a much younger person… been there, done that… and I was in the minority even then. Most of my generation (at least the ones I knew) were sheep in their youth. Quiet sheep. I’ve always been the odd one for fighting the wind, pushing life uphill and raging against the machine.

Balancing my love of autonomy and communication with my passion for technology and “connectedness” has always been a saga of personal oxymorons. Determining how much I do is promoting my own freedom (the freedom to not struggle and fight everything in life) vs. selling my freedom (by accepting things that once let loose into the wild cannot be recaptured) is taking up too much of my mental energy.

View the Video

And, although the video on the Next 5000 days of the Internet is interesting and follows many of the positives of the connected society, it also screams the downfalls (even if the presenter doesn’t seem to notice.) And, Mr. Kelly? The word you are looking for (the replacement for the words “the one”) is “Borg.”

That is all. Rambling rant over… and out.

My father offered me the following story yesterday. I found it both shocking and worth sharing:

A man and his faithful hunting dog get lost in the woods. They travel for several days trying to find their way home, without success. They are getting really hungry and are in danger of starving. So, this hunter lops the tail off his best friend and roasts it over a campfire, eating one part and throwing the other part to the dog.

The dog eats the tail, and then enthusiastically licks the face of the hunter.

He told me that is how our government works. He said that the dog is the people, the hunter is our government. ‘Nuff said.

Today I received the following email from my mother. You may have already seen this, but I just had to share:

Recent hurricanes and gasoline issues are proof of the existence of a new chemical element. Research has led to the discovery of the heaviest element yet known to science.

The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.

These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact.

A minute amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction (that would normally take less than a second) anytime from four days to four years to complete. Governmentium has a normal half-life of two to six years; it does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places.

In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each reorganization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes.

This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that  Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration. This  hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass. When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as
Governmentium, since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons.

Now, back to your life…

I tripped across a detailed, well-written and researched article by Naomi Wolf. It’s also an alarming article entitled Fascist America in 10 Easy Steps.

I’ve read through the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights recently, and would like to share a few of my favorites with you here. (more…)

I can’t imagine the daily horrors visited on people facing foreclosure now. The numbers continue to climb and the economy plummets. I’ve been told I like to worry. Maybe that’s true, but I think the current situation is worry-worthy. (more…)

A recent case in Washington DC may have some long-reaching ramifications for constitutionalists and gun rights activists alike. Read more about Parker vs. District of Columbia.

I’ve been decidedly apolitical for the past few years. I have a few pet issues (like Net Neutrality) and am probably more Libertarian than any other recognized political flavor. I also believe in individual rights — as it relates to freedom, property, reproduction, and bearing of arms.

With that said, I must say I was quite surprised to find out more about Ron Paul, a Republican candidate for the Oval Office. With a couple of glaring exceptions, I really like his stance on most issues. I mean I REALLY like them. I don’t know if I can vote for him with his stance on those couple of issues, but I do find him pretty impressive in most areas. If I were to employ the 80/20 rule, he’d win my vote, but I’m not ready to do that quite yet.

And how did I find out about him, after deciding to be apolitical during this election? I found an article on him spending a weekend poking at his iPhone until he hacked it and installed a “tweaked” Ubuntu distribution on it. I find that impressive. Impressive enough that I went to his campaign website to learn more… and then to Wikipedia to compare him to his competition for the Republican nomination for 2008. (more…)

I was introduced to a cool bumpersticker this weekend that works for me on so many levels. I know it was merely a political statement for the owner, but with the whole “bad Karma” thing I’ve noted in 2007, it fits beyond the White House reference:

2008: The end of an error

(Politically speaking, I just hope that it’s not the beginning of an even larger one.)

I’ve been worried about the financial status of most individuals in the US. I’ve also been seriously concerned about the “creative” financing techniques for home buyers for quite some time — which have led to the current problems with rampant foreclosure rates. And I’m ever-frustrated with our credit-enamored society and its “enjoy now, screw my future” mentality.

And then this about the stock market dance from NPR this morning. So now the federal reserve is going to artificially “prop up” the mortgage industry?

Geeze! It makes me crazy.

My peer, writer JJ Murphy of WriterByNature.com, sent me a great little link this morning to http://www.truemajorityaction.org/oreos/
where Ben Cohen (of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream) solves the federal budget issues with a few packages of Oreo Cookies as presentation tools. Nicely done!

If you want to be better informed, more politically active, or would simply enjoy being entertained — visit the TrueMajority website and watch the animated presentation.

The “new” media approach to self-publishing multimedia on the web is doing more in the political arena of late. This one, highly questionable presentation IMHO, has struck a cord on the web by using sex to sell the candidate. It’s produced by BarelyPolitical.com and is cute, albeit bothersome.

http://www.youtube.com/v/wKsoXHYICqU

And you thought Apple’s iPod had great fan-created multi-media stuff!

While doing a bit of research on Bloggers Rights for an article over on WickedWordCraft.com today, I found the following information about AT&Ts violation of customer rights and privacy (providing information to NSA to help them spy on Americans).

It makes my skin crawl (as do most actions classified as “Homeland Security”). (more…)

Last Friday was “field day” at Alex’s school. I remember field day from elementary school. I remember it fondly, so I’m ok with that, despite the fact that I DO mind that there has been alot of movie watching the last few days/weeks. (more…)

If you are like me, your Outlook suddenly did something weird a couple of weeks ago. I ended up going in and changing all the errant times by hand (grumbling the whole while about a government with nothing better to do than to once again mess with the laws of nature and my clocks).

And, I was looking forward to the same issues this fall…

But I found a download to help those Window’s users who are still enjoying the fun now, and those who worry that they will enjoy the fun again in a few months.

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=931836

If you have downloaded Windows updates lately, or if you have automatic updates enabled, you probably already have this patch. (But if don’t know, then apply the patch. If you already have it a message will tell so and it will not install.)

Hope this helps your frustration level.

I saw some interesting information the other day about the current debt load in America — the result of the “war on terror” (aka: Bush’s public display of overwhelming narcissism).

And I felt that the $145 billion in additional debt for his little role as the vain queen gazing into a mirror and crooning “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the biggest little guy of them all?” could have been better spent in other ways.

For a graphic breakdown of alternative projects for that debt, I refer you to the Budget Graph Blog (aka: Death and Taxes: A Visual Graphic of Where Your Tax Dollars Go). It’s pretty interesting stuff.

As always, I support our troops and all those individuals with the horrid responsibility to protect us and enforce the orders of their not-so-superior commander in chief. It’s not a job I’d want. But the commander himself??? Very little respect and support streaming from me in his general direction these days.

WARNING: It’s a rant…

Ok, my freak flag is about to fly high again. I have been reading the hubbub about a recent bill to “protect our children from pornography” and psychotic poaching in the schools. And once again, I have to wonder about our school system and our political system.

I mean, seriously (to capture one of my favorite Grey’s Anatomy phrases)…If we, as a society, have first given our right to parent our children to the state and the school system, I must (apparently) learn to quit asking “where are the parents in this scenario?” But, after reading the bill that’s being promoted, I have to ask a similar question, “Where are the teachers during school hours?” if this is the type of thing they worry will happen in schools?

Of course, concern for the children’s privacy is a serious one. After all, I recently learned that my own son’s high school class called the daily roll by projecting the children’s names up on the wall, along with sensitive personal information, such as social security numbers and home phone numbers and addresses. I nearly had a fit.

(more…)