In response to *no comment*'s response to Safety Caps journal, here goes.

x\\ spell your name backwards: erohwxuniL
x\\ have you ever had a song written about you: Not that I know of.
x\\ what song makes you cry: The Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler... just kidding.
x\\ what song makes you happy: Dancing With Myself.
x\\ what's your all time fav. song?: Jeff Buckley's rendition of Hallelujah.
x\\ what do you listen to before you go to sleep: Whatever's on the MythTV box. Usually MadTV or Family Guy.
x\\ height: 6' 5"
x\\ hair color: brown
x\\ piercings: None

r i g h t _ n o w . . .
x\\ what color pants are you wearing: Blue
x\\ what song are you listening to: "Karma Police" by Radiohead
x\\ what taste is in your mouth?: Diet Rite Cola
x\\ whats the weather like?: Cold and Misty
x\\ how are you?: Anticipating a callback from an interview. Unsure.
x\\ get motion sickness?: Only in the back seat of a car or the Batman ride at Six Flags in Chicago.
x\\ have a bad habit?: Procrastination, but I'm trying to put that off.
x\\ get along with your parents?: Usually.
x\\ boyfriend/girlfriend: Not currently, but looking.
x\\ have a current crush: A younger version of Ann Coulter.
x\\ have a big regret: Anything that went beyond kissing a girlfriend.

f a v o u r i t e . . .
x\\ tv show: MadTV
x\\ conditioner: No
x\\ book: Fahrenheit 451
x\\ non alchohol drink: Diet Rite Black Cherry
x\\ alchohol drink: Whisky Sour
x\\ things to do on the weekend: Recover from the mess I've made in my room the previous week.

h a v e _ you _ e v e r . . .
x\\ broken the law: Yes.
x\\ snuck out of the house: Yes.
x\\ ever gone skinny dipping: Yup!
x\\ made a prank phone call: No.
x\\ tipped over a port-a-potty: No.
x\\ use your parents credit card: Yes.
x\\ skipped school: No.
x\\ fell asleep in the shower/bath: No.
x\\ been in a school play: "Too Many Cooks", back in grade school.
x\\ had a boyfriend/girlfriend: Girlfriends, yeah.
x\\ had children: No.
x\\ been in love: In love with love perhaps.
x\\ have a hard time getting over someone: Yeah, but thus is life.
x\\ been hurt?: Yeah. It happens.
x\\ gone out with someone you only knew for 3 days: Yeah.

r a n d o m . . .
x\\ have a job: Not currently. Just finished a temp job 2 days ago.
x\\ your cd player has what in it right now: MP3 collection of the U2 Discography from ~1997 to 2004.
x\\ if you were a crayon, what color would you be?: Blue.
x\\ what makes you happy?: Giving of myself both in time and in material.
x\\ the next CD you're going to buy: Thinking of trying some country. Maybe Sara Evans.

w h e n _ was _ t h e _ last _ t i m e . . .
x\\ you got a real letter: Hmm. Do I still get mail? I think maybe a week ago, but that was just an ad. Probably 2 months ago.
x\\ got an email: Today.
x\\ thing you purchased: Gas
x\\ Tv program you watched: Nile on Discovery Channel.
x\\ movie you saw in the theaters: Garden State.
x\\ kissed: My mom, about 2 weeks ago. Someone not related? Over 5 years.
x\\ hugged: Just a few hours ago, my niece. Someone not related? Over 5 years.
x\\ song heard: Radiohead - Fake Plastic Trees
x\\ place you were [besides home]: Stopped by my brother's place to pick up a water testing kit, just after an interview.
x\\ phonecall: Another brother asking about wireless ad-hoc networks.
x\\ you were depressed: My lowest funk in years was several months ago, but it was short-lived. I choose to be happy.
x\\ you were in the hospital: Tagging along with my soon-to be sister in law while she was having her gout checked. Never been in the hospital for personal reasons after birth.

w h a t _ comes _ t o _ mind . . .
x\\ car: My 1996 Cougar XR7 and how I have to debug a speedometer problem on it this weekend.
x\\ murder: Scott Peterson
x\\ cape: Cod.
x\\ penis: Obscene.
x\\ cell: number.
x\\ shoe: lace.
x\\ fun: game
x\\ crush: girl
x\\ music: Radiohead (damn you previous questions!)
x\\ chalk: board

n u m b e r . . . :
x\\ of times you've been in love: 0. Times I thought I was in love? 3
x\\ of girls you have kissed: 3
x\\ of boys you have kissed: 0
x\\ of times your name has appeared in a newspaper: ~5-10. It's hard to keep track in a small town.
x\\ of scars on your body: ~12, only 1 significant one tho.
x\\ of things in your past you regret: 1 serious regret, but several minor ones.

d o _ you _ t h i n k _ you _ a r e . . . :
x\\ pretty: Guys aren't pretty. And if they are, that's disturbing.
x\\ funny: With the right people.
x\\ hot: Average.
x\\ friendly: Yes.
x\\ ugly: No.
x\\ caring: Yeah.
x\\ sweet: With the right girl.
x\\ dorky: With people that know me.

f a v o u r i t e . . . :
x\\ actor/actress: Mel Gibson since Payback.
x\\ least favorite day: April 15th
x\\ flower: Lilac
x\\ jello flavor: Red with cottage cheese
x\\ summer/winter: Summer

p e r s o n _ who _ l a s t . . . :
x\\ slept in your bed: Me. Other than me? My last girlfriend.
x\\ saw you cry: My priest.
x\\ sent you an email: Katy (Damn spammers.)

h a v e _ you _ e v e r
x\\ said i love you and meant it: Yes
x\\ went out in public in pjs: I don't do PJs.
x\\ kept a secret from everyone: Yeah.
x\\ been to new york: Yes. Senior class trip 1996.
x\\ to california: Nope.

w h e n _ was :
x\\ last cigarrete: 2 months ago.
x\\ last cry: October 30th.
x\\ last book read: "Never Give In - The Extraordinary Character of Winston Churchill" by Stephen Mansfield.
x\\ last curse word uttered: Damn (...where's my phone)
x\\ last beverage drank: Diet Rite Cola.
x\\ last food consumed: Taco Salad
x\\ last phone call: 4.5 hours ago
x\\ last shoes worn: Black leather/suede business casual.
x\\ last cd played: U2 (I swear these questions keep repeating.)
x\\ last thing written: U2 (I swear these questions keep repeating.)
x\\ last word spoken: phone
x\\ last sleep: 9 hours ago.
x\\ last im: 1.5 hours ago.
x\\ sexual fantasy: Like I'd share that.
x\\ last ice cream eaten: Schwan's Strawberry with frozen strawberries on top.
x\\ last time wanting to die: Let's not think about that. It's been so many years, I can't even recall if I really wanted to.

I've heard newly college-indoctrinated students say that the US election system should not be a one or the other, or lesser of two evils election. They say that we should vote from a pool of multiple people (or parties) and then the person with the most popularity wins.

But take for example Gimp Splash Screen contest, where, when presented with the full list of candidates, I voted for this: http://www.gimp.org/var/wgo-contest-current/2004120221450428256.png. I guess I'm partial to blues and dark contrast. However, when I checked out the ranked page, I realized that my first choice was no where near winning. But another of my favorites was in 4th place (http://www.gimp.org/var/wgo-contest-current/200412020906377591.png), So I voted for it as well. I guess I'd conside this the primary for the election. If my candidate does not get close to 1st or 2nd place, I'll be voting for whichever of the 2 top candidates that I think looks best.

Now, my point was that if I had voted for the fireworks splash and had no other vote, I would have had less power than when I can vote between the two most likely to win. At least then I have power to push the scale my way just a little futher.

Hope that made sense. Sometimes I feel like I'm rambling.

So, now that the election is over, and the concession speeches have been made, I'm imagining how things are going to be during and shortly after the next 4 years. Bush got the majority vote, something that hasn't been done since his father's election. This should quell the whole "mandate" B.S. that liberals use when their guy loses. So now that Bush has the road wide open for him, and 4 more years to get done what he needs to get done, here are a few of my predictions:

Reaganomics: Reloaded. I expect some real backbone out of the Bush administration backed by the strong Republican House, Senate, and even the Governorships. This is further augmented by the final-term factor: Bush doesn't have a re-election to lose. This will lead to some significant tax policy changes. I expect a serious push for some sort of flat sales tax replacing the IRS Federal Income Tax system. This will result in a reaction from all "classes" the US against the ever increasing confiscatory taxes that have plagued us for decades since the IRS's inception. People will finally see what they've been really paying, and will start to reconsider what they pay for. The final result of this will be a smaller, less tyrannical government, significant increase in business ownership, business growth, and more economic prosperity for all, even the "poor".

Gay Marriage Ban. I know this may bother some of my gay friends (that's right folks, even conservatives have gay friends), but the fact is that marriage has been defined as being between 1 man and 1 woman since the creation of the institution. To define it any other way is to open the door to destruction of any meaning of the word. As has been stated, we might as well allow marriage between multiple men and multiple women, or even between a man, woman, and an animal. What is really at issue are the "benefits" allowed to gay partners. Courts are trying once again to write law by re-"interpreting" (redefining) what should be clearly defined laws, and even in cases such as this, words themselves. If benefits should be allowed to gay partners, this is something that needs to be voted on, and have law created to reflect what the public believes regarding these issues. The first step moving toward this has already happened in several states. A gay marriage ban has received significant support in the states that voted on it just yesterday.

School Voucher Movement. Expect some sort of significant movement regarding school vouchers. It'll probably start with a pilot somewhere like D.C., and then possibly moving forward into the states in 2008. This is pretty dependent on how the 2006 Congressional and Senate races turn out, but I'm optimistic that the public will vote (more) Republicans back in after the economic boom. If vouchers take hold, we could see some serious movement back to the conservative roots of our country. Our children will finally get a decent and accurate education on the freedom, the history, and the heritage of our country. We'll gradually take back the power from the Socialist Elite and finally put it back in the hands of the people.

Ohio Conspiracy Theory: Starring everyone's favorite propagandist, Michael Moore. Now that cooler heads have prevailed, Ohio is clearly conceeded as being won by Bush. But that won't stop our resident Minister of Disinformation from rewriting history. Expect to see this before the end of 2005.

Hollywood's Empty "Threat". Once again, none of the Hollywood elite, those who had made threats to leave this country if Bush gets elected, will actually leave. Baldwin said it (again), I think Streisand said it, and I think Martin Sheen said it (again). But of course, they won't back up their arrogant promise with action. Wimps. Go home already. Oh yeah, that's right, the USSR is no more.

So that's it for now. I'm sure more things will come to mind, which I'll post in part 2.

Wanderers. Always use your turn signals, even in obvious turning situations. It alerts others around you of your intent, allowing them to anticipate your movements and be better defensive drivers.

Opposite Swerving. Don't swerve left before turning right. And don't swerve right before turning left. It's just plain stupid, and unsafe.

Tailgating. If if don't plan to pass me, don't ride my bumper. It's unsafe for you and me, holds up traffic behind you, and forces people to make illegal multi-vehicle passes at high speeds. Provide at least 4 seconds of distance between you and I.

Copy-cat Speeds. Use your cruise control. If you don't have cruise control, try to maintain a consistent speed. Varying speed causes wolf packs, which results in the tailgating behavior described above.

Slow Drivers in Left Lane(s). When on a multi-lane highway, stay in the slow lane whenever possible. No one should ever have to pass you on the right.

Slow Passers. Pass expediently. If you take your time passing, and someone is quickly approaching behind you, you cause wolf packs.

Lingerers. Don't linger in blind spots. Vary your speed temporarily to get out of it. Don't allow other people to linger in your blind spot either

Unhelpful Obstructors. Deter wolf-packing behavior. If someone beside you is passing slowly, either speed up or (preferrably) slow down temporarily to allow a sufficient gap in traffic so that blocked-in drivers can pass the idiot who was lingering beside you. If someone is behind you and refuses to pass, slow down in passing zones until they do. Slow down to extremes if necessary to achieve this goal.

Angry Drivers. Don't flip people off or give people dirty looks. It just makes them do even more idiotic, dangerous, and annoying things to piss you off.

Stupid Swerving. When avoiding a moving road hazard, swerve behind the object, not ahead of it. I saw a lady today try to avoid a semi truck that had pulled across our lane of traffic in a yellow light. She inattentively tried to proceed through the intersection, and when she realized that the light was turning red, she swerved in the direction of the truck (in front of it), not away from it (behind it). Idiocy. I think this is why they are telling drivers to not swerve for deer. Because idiots swerve in front of them (toward them) instead of behind them (away from them).

Arrogant Merging. When merging with traffic, match the traffic speed and adjust to fill a gap in traffic. DO NOT force other drivers on the highway to move into other lanes.

Big Blind Spotters. Adjust side-view mirrors to see further into your blind spot. The rear-view mirror inside your car is for seeing behind you. Don't duplicate efforts by using the side mirrors for the same purpose. If adjusted properly, you can almost completely eliminate your blind spot.

Inattentive Lane Changers. Check your blind spot when merging or changing lanes. Even with properly adjusted mirrors, it's possible for idiots to sit in your blind spots.

Lane Jockeys. In gridlock traffic, stay in your lane. Selfishly changing lanes causes more accidents and makes people tailgate just to keep you from merging.

Lane Procrastinators. In gridlock traffic, find your lane early. Don't wait until the last minute to change lanes just to catch your exit.

Ok. I'm done. Now, for the rest of you. What are your pet peeves, traffic or otherwise? Feel free to use any topic, I just used traffic for mine.

I'm becoming convinced more and more that 1984 is coming unless we act now. Case in point:

One of my brothers sent this on to me: Brainwashing 101. I encourage any level-headed, open-minded person to watch it. I say that because I know that the hot-headed, hatemongering masses will not. Most of the video doesn't really surprise me, but the extent to which the students are persecuted by college officials does. It's pretty scary how speech rights are locked down on college campuses to make anything but liberal propaganda speech worthy of expulsion.

I'll pass on the "higher-education". I've got a life-long enrollment to University of Ideas instead.

Sidenote: I've seen the speaker referred to in the video, C. Mason Weaver. He's an excellent speaker, and has a unique point of view on government, taxes, slavery, racism, jobs, and business ownership. I encourage you to read It's OK to Leave the Plantation, or for the impatient, The Rope.

I just can't express how frustrating it is to have people like John Kerry, the liberal elite, and their mindless drones (the "Bush Sucks" crowd) claim to be on the side of the unemployed. Here I am, jobless, and Kerry is threatening to squelch any chance of jobs recovery with his socialist plan for further growth of government programs. John Kerry has been quite critical of the President when it comes to job loss. He likes to place the blame on Bush for the shallow jobs growth. Of course, the reality is that the recession trend started well before Bush was in office and had a chance to push an economic policy. It was a miracle we had him in office during 9/11. It was his backbone and strength of character that brought us the tax cuts that cut the recession off and brought us back on track in upward trend. But of course, the media pushes a well crafted, hand picked set of facts so as to change public perception (a nice way of saying brainwashing) that the jobs loss was Bush's fault. The clock on my computer says it's 2004, but I'm pretty sure it's two decades fast.

But anyhow, since Kerry likes placing blame where it isn't due, I have a question for him and the other Kerry supporters out there: What does Kerry plan to do to create more jobs? Best I can tell, this is what he/they have planned:

Tax credits
In other words: Take money from those who create jobs (the "richest 1%"), run it through some government bureacracy (more government jobs), and then take what's left and return it to the public through "tax credits" which is code for wealth redistribution. And of course, like most government programs, there's the wonderful lack of accountability that's evident to anyone who's been on unemployment or welfare. Basically, anyone with a shaky business plan can get "free money" (codename for socialist wealth redistribution).

Increased Unemployment Benefits
Here's a really simple one. Basically you'll get paid by the taxpayer (the job creators) to do nothing, encouraging you to not work, thus further running the economy into the ground. And as stated before, more government jobs and bureacracy to run the taxpayers money through, with that always present lack of spending accountability.

Government Jobs
Need I say more really. Furthermore, this category doesn't fix my situation. I refused to subject myself to the 4-years-hate of the required State College education, put myself into debt, and get a piece of paper that has B.S. on it. This category includes the members of the NEA teachers unions at our Public (codename for Government) Schools. This also explains their position: Teachers, vote Democrat so that we get paid more to do less, and block accountability and competition in education. Screw the students. One size fits all, cookie cutter, run 'em through the system when it comes to education because it's easiest for us.


On a related note:
It's funny how label averse Kerry is, and then wears the Catholic label as if it describes him. Liberals hate labels because, in Orwellian style, they hate being defined. Unless of course, wearing a label helps them achieve their goal: more absolute power through socialism. I, on the other hand, wear my labels like a badge. I am Catholic/Christian, Capitalist, Conservative, Republican. Who is being honest with the public? Who's telling the truth here? Who is really looking for more government power over your life?

Ok, I feel a little better now. Now go do the right thing. Vote Bush.

(Originally posted here.)

Googlefodder: Here'e my real blog. Slightly more updated. Linuxwhore.com.

So I come back online today, and check my favorite liberal tech talk site, Slashdot. I check my recent posting to see if I've gotten any replies, low and behold, I've been modded to 0. -1, Overrated to be specific. I could see this being an intelligent mod HAD I ACTUALLY HAD POSITIVE MODS!!! But no! The comment was previously the default "1" and the comment stating a preference in under-appreciated Movies.

Secondly, I have no idea where I am on the Karma scale. "Good"? What the? I liked actually seeing my score. But apparently keeping score is bad karma.

What the hell! Seriously!

Hmm. Journaling. Fun. This is only a test.