Lots of times I'm asked why I don't take many stands in politics. Why I've got bad words for everyone. Repubs, Dems, Internet-Libertarians that worship Ron Paul. The reason is very much simple; it isn't that I don't care, or that I don't follow the news. I just don't know what to believe. And I do not want to discuss what might not be the truth.
Here's a recent example - the tasing incident in Florida. Among a few friends of mine, the topic of debate here is clear; whether police go too far with their means of apprehension. This is the only issue I can find that is worthy of discussion. Yet there are some folks that think that more things like this should happen to "punk ass students", which is absolutely asinine, while liberals are spinning this into a free speech martyr. Watch the clips of the incident in which they so conveniently cut out the parts that show the student cutting the line, being rude, etc. What about when his alloted time was over? The kid was treated harshly, but he also took time away from other students. Then there are reports of his possible antics before the speech, and of him asking if camera crews would be at the police station. In another light this kid is opportunistic and scheming, and nothing at all like the martyr people want him to be. And yet, so many of these claims are (as far as I can tell) unreported. and so its tough to condemn him. Point is, every side wants to spin this to suit their need, and no amount of false plays of innocence is going to pull the wool over my eyes. Is it a free speech issue? Tough to say when no one wants to look at the whole picture.
It happens in so many other places. Obviously the headlines on cnn or msnbc.com are load of crap, filled as much with celebrity news as anything. But its tough to believe some of the news pieces that pop up on Digg with flooring and devastating news about the administration when their sources seem so asinine and anything but concrete. I'm sorry, but when people on that site start to feel good about the president of Iran because they hate Bush so much, it is hard to take them seriously.
Remember the Downing Street memo? I showed it to someone who was absolutely floored by it. It was a pretty shocking document. But amazed as I was, I was also there when I learned parts of it were edited and changed, which I had to factor into my consideration of the information. I don't think she ever did the same thing. Anything condemning Bush was A-ok for her and so many others. But it isn't a very good idea to fight your opponent when your own information may not be kosher.
Just what the hell is correct? Who is giving us the straight skinny? And how the hell do you convince people that the little slice of it that is sitting in their heads and cranking out their brash armchair political analysis might be wrong?
Makes me question all those history classes I've taken
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Cleaning House
I went through my music collection today, cleaning out a lot of junk that I haven't and wont' ever listen to. I realized a long time ago that keeping songs on your harddrive just because you can is a pretty retarded idea, especially when you are as lazy as me and would rather shuffle through your entire music directory rather than create playlists. When I was a freshman in college and had most of a 120 gig drive to utilize, and I met people with binders full of CD's, I did stupid things like rip E.T. the soundtrack. How it took me this long to get around to removing most of it is beyond me.
Now my library is at a bit more than 11 gigs - paltry by many people's standards, but I have learned that this too is a rather foolish thing to think or do. Yes, you might actually fill that 60 gig ipod to capacity, but are you really listening to it all? Or are you just downloading/buying tracks hand over fist so you can listen to them for two times before moving on to the next thing. I think a lot of people are afraid, unwilling, or too lazy to trim their collection, and for me only the last option is understandable. So you have the full discography of Blink 182. You have since Junior High. Are you really listening to it anymore now that you're out of college. For me these answers are a hearty "no". So I get rid of it. I listen to music on an ipod shuffle, which forces me to pick the best songs and actually listen to albums as a complete work rather than a string of singles. It really has improved the listening experience.
The fact that I'm calling a library of 2,500 songs lean is horrible. But the truth is that compared to many modern music listeners it really is. We truly are in a society of media overload. We thrill at having so many songs, games, and movies at our command. Web 2.0 is sweet. Yadda Yadda Yadda. But sooner or later it piles up, and when it does you find yourself either ignoring some things or keeping up with all of it. The latter drives you nuts, and the former makes you wonder why you gobbled it up in the first place.
Keeping it simple is tough in its own ways, but it sure is nice sometimes.
Now my library is at a bit more than 11 gigs - paltry by many people's standards, but I have learned that this too is a rather foolish thing to think or do. Yes, you might actually fill that 60 gig ipod to capacity, but are you really listening to it all? Or are you just downloading/buying tracks hand over fist so you can listen to them for two times before moving on to the next thing. I think a lot of people are afraid, unwilling, or too lazy to trim their collection, and for me only the last option is understandable. So you have the full discography of Blink 182. You have since Junior High. Are you really listening to it anymore now that you're out of college. For me these answers are a hearty "no". So I get rid of it. I listen to music on an ipod shuffle, which forces me to pick the best songs and actually listen to albums as a complete work rather than a string of singles. It really has improved the listening experience.
The fact that I'm calling a library of 2,500 songs lean is horrible. But the truth is that compared to many modern music listeners it really is. We truly are in a society of media overload. We thrill at having so many songs, games, and movies at our command. Web 2.0 is sweet. Yadda Yadda Yadda. But sooner or later it piles up, and when it does you find yourself either ignoring some things or keeping up with all of it. The latter drives you nuts, and the former makes you wonder why you gobbled it up in the first place.
Keeping it simple is tough in its own ways, but it sure is nice sometimes.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
And Another One
Normally I don' find myself interested in either mashups or nerdcore. This is an exception on both fronts. I think you will find it more than acceptable.
Like dairy and canned goods, singles have a national awareness week. Way to try and make ourselves feel better for lack of sex by pretending we're feeling better.
Feel better?
Also, Talk Like a Pirate day? Fuck that jazz. Congratulations - you helped beat an internet meme into the ground and proceed to kick the corpse over the span of several years. Now cut it out and latch onto something else that's just as bad and probably a year stale by now.
Wise men have pointed out that "geeks" don't celebrate Talk Like a Ninja Day because it would mean they would have to shut up and not annoy us
Like dairy and canned goods, singles have a national awareness week. Way to try and make ourselves feel better for lack of sex by pretending we're feeling better.
Feel better?
Also, Talk Like a Pirate day? Fuck that jazz. Congratulations - you helped beat an internet meme into the ground and proceed to kick the corpse over the span of several years. Now cut it out and latch onto something else that's just as bad and probably a year stale by now.
Wise men have pointed out that "geeks" don't celebrate Talk Like a Ninja Day because it would mean they would have to shut up and not annoy us
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Fall is Autumn
I don't think my last post was that long ago, but somehow I have a lot to talk about. Better than nothing.
So this is the first fall that I can remember that I am not returning to school. I must say that the transition went smoothly, but it still remains a bit jarring. When you know people that are going back to a world of exams and silly parties and free events, it puts your own life in perspective, in the sense that you ask yourself if you miss it all. As of now, I can't say that I do, though more than one person has told me this eventually change. I don't see it though. I have a theory on this - the people that tell me most enthusiastically that I will miss college are the ones that had zero responsibility outside of graduating. People that didn't even have to pay a measly cell phone bill in all of their lives. For them, the small tidbits of responsibility in college is enough. These people have had mom and dad write all the checks out for them, and they don't like having to do it for themselves. I guess when you were writing checks to mom and dad before you were old enough to relieve your minimum wage job with smooth relaxing cigarettes, it isn't quite the tough pill to swallow. I never lived the real world life in college, but I came close one summer, and it was enough to make me want the whole damn thing, to be completely in control of my life. It has its ups and downs, but its working.
Back to being out of school - you really don't notice it too much. You're so ingrained into your new life and schedule that you forget about the old transitions you used to have to make. If anything, you start to take in and appreciate the change in season more than you used to, and that is quite nice.
My job gave me business cards. Apparently my title is "Software Engineer" This is alarming - I would have accepted "Programmer" or "Code Monkey" or "What the fuck does he do?" Software Engineer seems too fancy, at least until I have more experience.
Still doesn't hurt when trying to impress business types who don't know better.
I had a block party on my street last weekend, and it was quiet impressive. Who knew how much better beer pong was when played on a city street at midnight.
I have also acquired a copy of the Dreamcast version of Ikaruga. I have been waiting years to play this, and while I am embarrassed to be so late to the party, it is everything I had hoped it would be and more. It looks like a dream, and while I can't even beat the damn thing yet I can aleady see how deep it is. This little shooter may take up all of my game time until Halo 3, and even then I'm not sure what will happen.
I am really sad that Colin McRae has died. Watching the man was a treat, and he made WRC the only racing event I could stomach. He will be sorely missed, and I really wish more news outlets in the states gave the story coverage. He wasn't a household name in America, but the man excelled at multiple types of vehicles and races. We might be infatuated with NASCAR, but McRae was a special kind of talent that any race fan can appreciate.
My Mets cap has some wire mesh poking out on the inside, and rubbing it against my head caused several noticeable (but not deep) scratches in my forehead! No one has said anything about them, but that just might be because they don't know what to make of it. It looks like I took out my rage on my wall of a forehead, which makes no sense. Hopefully they'll heal soon. In the meantime, I have electrical tape on the inside of the cap to cushion. It feels really nice now, to the point where I don't want to replace it. I really, really should though. Guess you can't part with something you hold so dear. Rest assured I won't get any replacement until I'm back in New York. Then I'll have to break it in so drunk people want to steal it.
On a final note, I have to introduce everyone to a new member of the family -
I still have to test it actually, as I know it has disc read errors. Even if it runs with issue, this gives me a chance to play some absolute classics. I'm proud to add one more notch in my Sega belt. Now to find a copy of Christmas Nights...
So this is the first fall that I can remember that I am not returning to school. I must say that the transition went smoothly, but it still remains a bit jarring. When you know people that are going back to a world of exams and silly parties and free events, it puts your own life in perspective, in the sense that you ask yourself if you miss it all. As of now, I can't say that I do, though more than one person has told me this eventually change. I don't see it though. I have a theory on this - the people that tell me most enthusiastically that I will miss college are the ones that had zero responsibility outside of graduating. People that didn't even have to pay a measly cell phone bill in all of their lives. For them, the small tidbits of responsibility in college is enough. These people have had mom and dad write all the checks out for them, and they don't like having to do it for themselves. I guess when you were writing checks to mom and dad before you were old enough to relieve your minimum wage job with smooth relaxing cigarettes, it isn't quite the tough pill to swallow. I never lived the real world life in college, but I came close one summer, and it was enough to make me want the whole damn thing, to be completely in control of my life. It has its ups and downs, but its working.
Back to being out of school - you really don't notice it too much. You're so ingrained into your new life and schedule that you forget about the old transitions you used to have to make. If anything, you start to take in and appreciate the change in season more than you used to, and that is quite nice.
My job gave me business cards. Apparently my title is "Software Engineer" This is alarming - I would have accepted "Programmer" or "Code Monkey" or "What the fuck does he do?" Software Engineer seems too fancy, at least until I have more experience.
Still doesn't hurt when trying to impress business types who don't know better.
I had a block party on my street last weekend, and it was quiet impressive. Who knew how much better beer pong was when played on a city street at midnight.
I have also acquired a copy of the Dreamcast version of Ikaruga. I have been waiting years to play this, and while I am embarrassed to be so late to the party, it is everything I had hoped it would be and more. It looks like a dream, and while I can't even beat the damn thing yet I can aleady see how deep it is. This little shooter may take up all of my game time until Halo 3, and even then I'm not sure what will happen.
I am really sad that Colin McRae has died. Watching the man was a treat, and he made WRC the only racing event I could stomach. He will be sorely missed, and I really wish more news outlets in the states gave the story coverage. He wasn't a household name in America, but the man excelled at multiple types of vehicles and races. We might be infatuated with NASCAR, but McRae was a special kind of talent that any race fan can appreciate.
My Mets cap has some wire mesh poking out on the inside, and rubbing it against my head caused several noticeable (but not deep) scratches in my forehead! No one has said anything about them, but that just might be because they don't know what to make of it. It looks like I took out my rage on my wall of a forehead, which makes no sense. Hopefully they'll heal soon. In the meantime, I have electrical tape on the inside of the cap to cushion. It feels really nice now, to the point where I don't want to replace it. I really, really should though. Guess you can't part with something you hold so dear. Rest assured I won't get any replacement until I'm back in New York. Then I'll have to break it in so drunk people want to steal it.
On a final note, I have to introduce everyone to a new member of the family -
I still have to test it actually, as I know it has disc read errors. Even if it runs with issue, this gives me a chance to play some absolute classics. I'm proud to add one more notch in my Sega belt. Now to find a copy of Christmas Nights...
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Critical Mass
The following games will be released within two weeks of each other
-Halo 3
-Half Life 2 Orange Box
-King of Fighters XI
The last two are my numbers one and two most anticipated games currently.
This is bad folks. Real bad.
If only my student loans didn't kick in a month after these releases.
Any ideas for quick cash?
-Halo 3
-Half Life 2 Orange Box
-King of Fighters XI
The last two are my numbers one and two most anticipated games currently.
This is bad folks. Real bad.
If only my student loans didn't kick in a month after these releases.
Any ideas for quick cash?
Monday, September 10, 2007
Football
I hate to say it, but I think the sport of football is waning on me.
Last night I watched the Giants play on Sunday Night Football. In its first year, SNF was a timid imitation of its old life as Monday Night Football. Now the transformation is complete, sort of. Instead of the iconic MNF song, we have some other country song that will change every week as different teams play each other. Also, instead of Hank Williams Jr. rocking out, we have a random country singer I can't name singing in front of a large screen display that is surrounded top and bottom with Sprint Logos, in case you did not know who the Official Wireless Provider of the NFL is. Even worse was the advertisement shown several times that seemed to be for both SNF and Chevy trucks. And when there's Chevy, you know there's that horrible Mellencamp song. And when there's said song, you know there will be grossly innacurate and stereotyped portrayals of true Americans, in this case what looks to be 20's era Italian immigrants playing football in a back alley. Yes
Then of course is the actual game, which means I have to listen to John Madden. If I hear one more person make excuses for the man and retarded commentary, I might just stop watching him. Regardless, the rest of the show winds up playing out exactly like MNF - far too long and drawn out with all the breaks and bullshit. The first quarter should not always be a guaranteed minimum of 45 minutes long.
But its more than a crappy broadcast that bothers me. Football's popularity is unquestionable, but I really start to wonder if it is getting out of hand. Hear me out on this one - I'll do my best not to make it a "I can't like popular things" rant.
For years, my family's football tradition was the same. Myself, dad, and one brother watched the Giants, maybe some other games. You'd read some sports news in the Sunday paper. That was it. It was nice and relaxing and you could get excited about the game every week. Later years introduced more beer and another brother to the mix, but all in all the Sunday tradition remained strong until we all moved out of the house.
But while we hardly changed, football sure did. You can't get away from it now. Here's how the week looks during football season.
Sunday - game day
Monday - post game day talk and another game
Tuesday - more post game talk because hey, we just had another game
Wednsday - perfect time to prepare your fantasy team?
Thursday - often another game
Friday - Time to make your picks for next week on the radio and argue about it for half an hour
Saturday - College Football
It never ends. And its getting ridiculous. There's no such thing as just enjoying your Sunday. Football is on every day of the week, and quite literally you cannot get away from it unless you tune yourself out from the sports world, and when you're also a baseball fan, that's pretty much impossible. We don't need all this information folks. I don't want to know who the radio jockeys are picking for each game. I sure as hell don't care about their fantasy results. I don't want some guy picking the best game each week of the season before it even starts based on how he thinks it will play out. Guess what? No one is ever right about any given season.
ESPN, I don't want any more bad jokes about College fandom. Penn State and Nortre Dame suck. I get it. Women watch football too. I get it.
I'm sick of fantasy. Maybe one day people will realize just how much of the game relies on luck and I won't have to see 13 magazines eager to dish out draft tips every time I hit the grocery store in late July. I also won't have to watch football with relatives that have a beer in one hand and the mouse in the other, watching the Yahoo stat tracker more than the game in front of them. And if they tell me about how they're happy that a Dallas player scored on NY because "he's on my fantasy team".
I'm glad you're product is an official sponsor of the NFL. Doesn't make me want to buy it. In fact it does nothing but remind me that the NFL is incredibly greedy and strict with their product. You can thank them for leaving Madden as the only football game in town.
Football should be about the game. It should not be a three ring circus where everything around the game matters more. Ever actually try and watch a football game in a crowded bar? It simply can't happen. And that I think explains my woes better than anything.
It looks like the Giants are going to suck this year, and I live in Baltimore. I think this is a good time to genuinely disconnect myself from football for a season, at least as best as I can in this 24 world of sporting. Concentrate on fall baseball, etc. I think it could work out well. I know what you're thinking - why don't you watch the Ravens? I say no thank you - any fanbase that feels they're invincible after winning a division on a super soft schedule, and includes people that think Boller is a wise choice as backup is not a fanbase I can actually join in good faith. New York fans are assholes, but we know when to shit on our teams, which is pretty much all the time.
Last night I watched the Giants play on Sunday Night Football. In its first year, SNF was a timid imitation of its old life as Monday Night Football. Now the transformation is complete, sort of. Instead of the iconic MNF song, we have some other country song that will change every week as different teams play each other. Also, instead of Hank Williams Jr. rocking out, we have a random country singer I can't name singing in front of a large screen display that is surrounded top and bottom with Sprint Logos, in case you did not know who the Official Wireless Provider of the NFL is. Even worse was the advertisement shown several times that seemed to be for both SNF and Chevy trucks. And when there's Chevy, you know there's that horrible Mellencamp song. And when there's said song, you know there will be grossly innacurate and stereotyped portrayals of true Americans, in this case what looks to be 20's era Italian immigrants playing football in a back alley. Yes
Then of course is the actual game, which means I have to listen to John Madden. If I hear one more person make excuses for the man and retarded commentary, I might just stop watching him. Regardless, the rest of the show winds up playing out exactly like MNF - far too long and drawn out with all the breaks and bullshit. The first quarter should not always be a guaranteed minimum of 45 minutes long.
But its more than a crappy broadcast that bothers me. Football's popularity is unquestionable, but I really start to wonder if it is getting out of hand. Hear me out on this one - I'll do my best not to make it a "I can't like popular things" rant.
For years, my family's football tradition was the same. Myself, dad, and one brother watched the Giants, maybe some other games. You'd read some sports news in the Sunday paper. That was it. It was nice and relaxing and you could get excited about the game every week. Later years introduced more beer and another brother to the mix, but all in all the Sunday tradition remained strong until we all moved out of the house.
But while we hardly changed, football sure did. You can't get away from it now. Here's how the week looks during football season.
Sunday - game day
Monday - post game day talk and another game
Tuesday - more post game talk because hey, we just had another game
Wednsday - perfect time to prepare your fantasy team?
Thursday - often another game
Friday - Time to make your picks for next week on the radio and argue about it for half an hour
Saturday - College Football
It never ends. And its getting ridiculous. There's no such thing as just enjoying your Sunday. Football is on every day of the week, and quite literally you cannot get away from it unless you tune yourself out from the sports world, and when you're also a baseball fan, that's pretty much impossible. We don't need all this information folks. I don't want to know who the radio jockeys are picking for each game. I sure as hell don't care about their fantasy results. I don't want some guy picking the best game each week of the season before it even starts based on how he thinks it will play out. Guess what? No one is ever right about any given season.
ESPN, I don't want any more bad jokes about College fandom. Penn State and Nortre Dame suck. I get it. Women watch football too. I get it.
I'm sick of fantasy. Maybe one day people will realize just how much of the game relies on luck and I won't have to see 13 magazines eager to dish out draft tips every time I hit the grocery store in late July. I also won't have to watch football with relatives that have a beer in one hand and the mouse in the other, watching the Yahoo stat tracker more than the game in front of them. And if they tell me about how they're happy that a Dallas player scored on NY because "he's on my fantasy team".
I'm glad you're product is an official sponsor of the NFL. Doesn't make me want to buy it. In fact it does nothing but remind me that the NFL is incredibly greedy and strict with their product. You can thank them for leaving Madden as the only football game in town.
Football should be about the game. It should not be a three ring circus where everything around the game matters more. Ever actually try and watch a football game in a crowded bar? It simply can't happen. And that I think explains my woes better than anything.
It looks like the Giants are going to suck this year, and I live in Baltimore. I think this is a good time to genuinely disconnect myself from football for a season, at least as best as I can in this 24 world of sporting. Concentrate on fall baseball, etc. I think it could work out well. I know what you're thinking - why don't you watch the Ravens? I say no thank you - any fanbase that feels they're invincible after winning a division on a super soft schedule, and includes people that think Boller is a wise choice as backup is not a fanbase I can actually join in good faith. New York fans are assholes, but we know when to shit on our teams, which is pretty much all the time.
Monday, September 03, 2007
Custom Job
I'm not a big fan of the Xbox 360 Guitar Hero controller. My roomate's seems to be falling apart on him, and the color just isn't what I expected it to be. Considering also that I will be using the GH3 Les Paul in any game that I can use it in once it releases, I didn't care much what happened to my used Xplorer controller. So here's what I did to it
It is not perfect - the frets stick a little bit, and the paint on them isn't very smooth. The whammy bar is broken as well, though I do know how to fix it (and I'm not sure I feel like unscrewing it all to get there. I still managed to five star a couple songs last night though, and since I never go for the highest of scores playing on this one, I can't complain about the performance hit. All in all, something fun to do and a learning experience about dismantling console hardware.
It is not perfect - the frets stick a little bit, and the paint on them isn't very smooth. The whammy bar is broken as well, though I do know how to fix it (and I'm not sure I feel like unscrewing it all to get there. I still managed to five star a couple songs last night though, and since I never go for the highest of scores playing on this one, I can't complain about the performance hit. All in all, something fun to do and a learning experience about dismantling console hardware.
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