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2006 Archives
May 1, 2006:
Spy On Your Kid:
Sprint and probably others are now pushing this spy on your kid
cell phone technology. It uses global positioning to track kids.
They say it's a good thing for the peace of mind of the parents.
Oh yeah? What does this say to the kids about trust? What about
the rights of the kids? What about the Fourth Amendment? Is this
not valid for kids?
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and
seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue,
but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons
or things to be seized."
Science and Evangelism:
In their first stages these two activities seem almost alike.
We have an experience or we observe something and we form an
opinion or theory about what we experienced or observed. Beyond
these first two steps, the activities diverge dramatically. The
scientist will devise experiments in an attempt to prove or disprove
his theory. He is seeking and promoting truth. The evangelist,
on the other hand, will seek information to support his theory.
He will not look for information that may contradict his assumptions.
He is seeking and promoting mythology. Both the scientist and
the evangelist manage to find what they seek.
What's the Difference?
A friend recently asked me if I knew the difference between treason
and sedition. I responded, sure! Then I began to stutter and
stammer. Turns out, I did not know. So here are the facts. Treason
is defined in our Constitution as the crime of levying war against
the United States, or of giving aid and comfort to its enemies.
It's almost impossible to prove because the constitution requires
two witnesses to the act or a confession in open court. I thought
the famous Rosenberg case (1953) was an example of conviction
for treason, but I was wrong there too. The Rosenberg's were
convicted of espionage, but not of Treason.
Sedition, on the other had, is defined as acts or words tending
to excite disaffection against governmental authority. In other
words, bad mouthing the government which I do almost continuously.
If we had a strict interpretation of sedition, I and many other
people wold never get out of prison. Fortunately, we are protect
under freedom of speech, Amendment I, and states rights, Amendment
10. So there too, King George. Nyah, nyah, nyah!
Bush:
He is planning to tap the strategic oil reserve to force down
gasoline prices an push his ratings up a point or two. Did I
ever mention that short term solutions are an epidemic in our
governments? What will we do when the oil reserve is used up?
The amazing thing about American government is it has gone on
for some 230 years without any long term planning at all. I fear
that house of cards is about to collapse.
As to who is to blame, let's get honest. The Dumbocrats are
blaming the Repulbicrumbs, but that is pure bull. We had an energy
crisis 25 years ago, back in the Carter administration (1977
- 1981). It was ignored and everyone thought it went away. Things
like that do not go away. If we had begun work on long term solutions
then, we would be out of the woods now. We did not, and we are
not. We are all to blame, but George is the person in power and
the only one wh can begin a long term plan. Get your head out
of your butt, George!
Our Soldiers:
The government has turned on them like a mad dog. They got wounded
and maimed. They got sent home. They cannot get work. Some of
them are living in their cars, Military service has pretty much
destroyed their lives. Then the government sends collection agencies
after them to recover pay they received due to government mismanagement
of payroll. Meanwhile, we continue to pour billions of government
dollars into the pockets of George's wealthy business cronies.
I think the ACLU ought to take this on. Of course they won't.
This is a tough case against powerful government bunglers. It's
easier and less dangerous to defend fruits.
Profound:
Our local television news people have given us profound news.
The anchor guy said, "Research shows that children who are
read to regularly and have books in their homes become better
readers." Ain't that just as profound as hell? How do they
figure these things out? I wonder how much money was spent to
discover the obvious?
Violin Music:
Our local news people also did a prolonged bleeding heart piece
on a pair of morons who are having trouble adopting a child from
Honduras. It has taken many years and lots of bribe money to
bring it off and it's not sure yet. Start the sad music now.
Meanwhile there are hungry homeless kids in Flint, MI that nobody
wants.
Fat Babies:
The world Health Organization has gone beyond the pale. They
are now saying fat babies are at risk. Say what? Should we put
our kids on a diet? How about diet pop instead of mother's milk?
What ever became of common sense? Babies are supposed to be fat
for crap's sake. As soon as they get mobile they will get lean
and tough assuming mom and pop set good eating examples. The
critical time is not when they are babies, but when they are
developing adult eating habits. That's why fat kids are a recent
epidemic. A few years ago, a soda pop was a treat. When did it
become a necessity? A few years ago, an apple a day was what
we had. Now we have fruit pies, cream cakes, and candy bars.
Leave the babies alone for crap's sake. Take the garbage away
from the kids and their parents.
Consider This:
In America, a person can get a degree from a university without
knowing anything at all about art, philosophy, literature, or
psychology. Am I the only one who is troubled by that? Whatever
happened to education? Our universities have become 4 and 5 year
trade schools. How many engineers do you know? Can any of them
tell a Van Gogh from a Kincaid? Do any of them care?
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2006 Archives
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