A Good Latte Is A Thing Of Beauty

In honor of this most auspicious occasion, I purchased a latte. I would also like to make today special by telling you of some of the odd, little things that make me happy. Today is indeed a wonderful day, because on this day I got my chauffeur's license. And on this day, I have been reinstated as a safe and good driver. This past Saturday was my first attempt to get my chauffeur's license. It is a day that will live in infamy. For on that day, I lost my license to Agent Sh**face, the bastard bureaucrat and enemy of all the thinking people. But we will not think of that day; only this day and the joy it has redeemed.

Odd things that make me happy:

Sipping a warm hazelnut latte on a crisp fall morning. Standing with my arms out and letting the warm rain fall down upon me. Hearing a song that I have not heard since I was a kid -- but it's a good song -- played on my favorite radio station. That I can stream my favorite radio station online. Writing a sentence of prose that sounds wonderful when it's read out loud. Hiking in the woods and taking the time to look at the shadows of dappled leaf patterns that cover the ground as the sun shines through the trees. Lying cozy and warm in a sleeping bag (in a cabin hopefully) and listening to the quiet of a peaceful lake where only the loons and the lapping water break the silence. Catching a fish -- but not baiting the hook. Climbing a tree. Mozilla Firefox. Eating fresh cotton candy. Feeling the heat of a warm day wrap me up inside it. Delicious food that looks beautiful. The scent of lilacs wafting through the warm spring air. Bees buzzing on a summer day. Looking out across the fields and knowing that I will always love the country more than the city. That funny smile you get from a stranger who is having just as good a day as you are and wants to share it with you. A stunningly emotional book that changes how I think and feel. The last sentence of a book, when the journey is done and all that is left is this one poignant line. A catchy chorus in a good song. Those moments in life when I see my future laid out before me and it seems so clear what I must do -- they never last, but they leave an impression. A dream, not the kind you have at night. Rather the kind that fills you up with inspiration and makes you walk out the door full of confidence in God's goodness and His purpose in your life. And, last but not least, knowing that I am a good driver and I have a driver's license.

Aggravation Thy Name Is Bureaucracy

For my new job -- yes, I did get it -- I require a chauffeur's license. So, I called the DMV, BMV, DOT, SOS, SOB, whatever name you happen to call the state agency in charge of issuing driver's licenses. All I wanted to know was what test I need to take to get the license and if I need to make an appointment. I knew I would have to take the driving test. However, I wanted to make sure I would not have to take a written test or (horror of all horrors) another eye test.

The woman I spoke with first asked me for my driver's license number. I had already stated the purpose of my call when she asked this. When I gave it to her she said it would not come up. When I tried to give the number to her again she got impatient obviously annoyed that I thought she was so incompetent as to enter the number wrong. What was I supposed to do? Either she entered it wrong, or my driver's license is a fluke that will not come up in their system. I'm invisible to my government, as Hillary would say -- and boy, would I like to be invisible to my government. So, next she asked for my name, then she wanted to know why I was calling again. I went through it again. I need to get a non-commercial chauffeur's license and wanted to know what tests I would have to take. She asked me if I was going to be a taxi driver. Well, no. I explained my situation and she got even more annoyed. She asked me if I was going to be driving a huge truck. Ah, why didn't she say that to begin with?

I finally figured out that all I need is a driving test and I have to show up and take it, no appointment necessary. But I ask you, why is it that bureaucrats must come up with every way of beating it around the bush before they can ask you a simple, direct question? Also, why is it that I have to pay to get my driver's license? Don't I pay enough in taxes already? Shouldn't the single, only service that my county government seems to provide be paid for by the fact that they take my hard earned money? Lastly, why do I have to jump through hoops to get this license? I can drive. I have a perfect record, shouldn't that tell these idiots something? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

The Wrong Trousers

Sometimes I wake up like Wallace in Wallace & Gromit in The Wrong Trousers feeling like I'm wearing a pair of robotic pants that have taken me down the street in the wrong direction for more years than I can tell. At least, emotionally I feel that way. It's not a depressing feeling, merely a melancholy one and it passes within a few hours. Always. Still, it happens. I know it has nothing to do with my life situation. I only feel better and better about that.

It's more like the feeling you get when you reach the end of a very good book and the author throws out one of those deeply moving lines that kinda gets you right here. And it is coupled with a feeling of wasted time. Sometimes I feel like I've wasted time in waiting to have kids. Then I remember all the things I can still do without having to find a babysitter or daycare. Sometimes I feel like I have wasted time in not finishing and trying to sell my book. Then again, I am still going strong on it. It will finish eventually. Sometimes I feel like I have wasted time not completing all my random projects and scrapbooks. Again, I'm not that broken up over them. Nor do I think that "wrong trousers" moments relate only to stuff I need to do.

No, it's more like the way the character Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn) explained the "mean reds" in the movie Breakfast at Tiffany's. "Suddenly you're afraid and you don't know what you're afraid of." Something like that, except that I'm not really that afraid. I'm more worried and spent, like I've used up all my emotional capital making choices that did not in the end complete the task I wanted to complete. In fact, they did not come near completing it. I'm just left wondering if I'll ever get it right or if I'm just so fundamentally flawed that I can't figure out what getting it right even means.

Outdated But True

Finally, someone who does not give J.K. Rowling more credit than is her due! Here is an article about Snape -- written before the 7th book -- by Orson Scott Card. I think he makes a lot of sense. It is especially worth mentioning that he does not think Rowling intentionally inserts a lot of the themes in the Harry Potter books. Of course, he does not think most authors do that and with modern literature I would agree. Back on subject, he also points out where Harry is kind of a jerk in the books. I always wondered why no one seemed to care that whenever Snape accused Harry of lying and breaking the rules Harry was indeed lying and breaking the rules. Yeah, Snape's vindictive, but that does not mean he's entirely wrong to distrust Harry and company.

Internet Exploder Version 6.66

I am aware that the current version of Internet Explorer (aka the Version of the Beast) is displaying my blog improperly. I am attempting to fix this. In the meantime, try Firefox.

. . . So Uncompromisingly Inferior!

Today I voted in my first Iowa Straw Poll. It was quite an experience. The experience was heightened by the fact that I chose to volunteer at the Straw Poll not for my candidate, but for the Iowa GOP. Let me tell you, if I ever volunteer for them again it will be too soon.

Okay, okay, you want results. Here ya go. Now, stop spoiling my story with your questions.

First, I arrived to learn that the medium size Straw Poll t-shirts did not come in and I was going to have to wear an enormous shirt. Medium would have been huge on me anyway, why can't anyone order smalls? I went to the restroom and came swimming out in my new, giant orange t-shirt. I swam up to the volunteer orientation. Once there I learned in completely uncertain terms how I was supposed to credential and check people in so they could vote. I then proceeded -- swimmingly and confusedly -- down the stairs to wait in a packed horde outside while our leader figured out which direction to take us in.

Fearless vague leader (FVL) took us to our building and requested all the good typists to sit behind the computers. Being a good typist I took my seat. I was soon accompanied by a fine, upstanding young volunteer with all the spirit and drive of a regular Iowan. She was great. FVL told us that we would be taking only student and military IDs. Then another leader came up to us and he shall be called confuzzled leader (CL). CL told us that we would take only driver's licenses. FVL came back and we asked her, she said that we would take driver's licenses, student ids and military ids. Then we learned that people with military ids and student ids had to fill out "voter registration" forms. No one knew if they had to fill the form out before or after they voted. It took us 15 minutes to get that news flash from FVL. Then we noticed we had no ballots. We were told that we would get to vote before all the other people. At 9:30am to be exact. Then they switched that to 9:45am. The ballots did not show up until 5 to 10. CL came back and said we would have to wait until later to vote (thus crushing the whole point of being a volunteer -- to vote first and with no lines) and he let the struggling masses into the building.

The masses were generally pleasant. I got cussed out twice. Once by a state trooper who thought it was ridiculous that I had to use his driver's license for an ID instead of his state trooper license. When we explained that the various campaigns had settled on certain rules the guy called me and the helpful fellow doing the explaining some unspeakable names and produced his driver's license. The second time I got cussed out it was by a fellow who could not fathom the fact that we wanted him to put ink on his finger. He was convinced that we were fingerprinting people because we had some napkins there in case anyone wanted to blot their finger so the ink would not get all over their clothes. This guy had some very choice words and would not listen to my nearly shouted explanation despite the fact that I explained three times. He kept coming back to cuss me out again! You would think he would have noticed the complete lack of fingerprinting equipment other than pink ink on an ink-pad . . . Iow-idiots, gotta love 'em.

So, other than that people were nice and listened. I must say, however, being around so many Iowans at once was daunting. They're great people most of the time. But they do not make logical connections. For example, take the above paragraph. Furthermore, when you tell them which way to go they sometimes go in the opposite direction. We had several people walk out the wrong door carrying their ballots with them. The other thing that got me was our hardworking volunteers. Good people, but they had a tendency to forget simple facts. Like, say, the fact that no one without an Iowa photo ID (driver's license, student id or military id) was allowed to vote. I had the people at the table next to mine send a woman over so I could put her info in when all she had was a piece of paper with her name and address on it. Now I do not disbelieve her and I feel bad that she did not get to vote. But we had to stick to the campaign rules and I hate it when people put me on the spot by saying I can help someone when I cannot.

Sometimes I think there is not enough space in Iowa for me and all these Iowans. Don't get me wrong, I have learned a lot by living in this great state: Number 1) people will always go that extra mile for you if you need help. Number 2) if an Iowan is looking for a fight there is no way to sway that Iowan's opinion. And Number 3) Iow-idiots are out there, everywhere. I can take a few at a time and laugh along my merry way. But 33,000? That I simply cannot take with a smile on my face.

The Great Failing Of Homeschooling

I am walking out on a limb to talk about this one and I know it. It is a limb upon which I will make my stand. Basically, I know a lot of my family and friends read my blog. I ask that you do not take what I am about to say to be anything more than constructive criticism.

In my mind there is one true failing in the area of homeschooling. I was homeschooled all through grade school and highschool. That is how I can identify this failing. I would add that it was less of a failing in my home than it was in those of some of my friends I have talked to. I would also add that it could be considered a general failing of our time when it comes to the parents of my own generation.

This failing concerns a simple enough part of human existence, one that we all must come to terms with eventually. That is sex. The way I understand it many homeschool parents keep their children out of schools so they will not receive the negative messages and poor education that is widespread today. When it comes to sex education I believe the most negative message is the notion that parents are not doing a good enough job telling kids about this so the schools have to step in and do it for them. Unfortunately, this negative message is true in many cases. I have had many friends -- schooled and homeschooled -- whose parents never told them a single thing about sex. Unless of course the kid was female then the parents told them one thing. The parents at some time or other suspected that the child was engaging in intercourse, thus projecting a feeling of insecurity and untrustworthiness upon that child and making the child desire to be rebellious. Come on parents, I think you can all do better than this.

I am lucky in that my parents at least explained the mechanics to me. I am unlucky in that they were not open about it once "the talk" was said and done. If I had questions I had to resort to the dictionary, the biology book or a friend with a dirty mind. But at least I had some direction in the beginning. Granted that direction did not teach me to defend myself against temptation, nor did it teach me to watch for predators. In those areas I have merely been lucky or perhaps God gave me a wisdom beyond my years. The short truth is that I think today's parents -- especially homeschooling parents -- are all too apt to view sexual intercourse in a completely negative light. They respond to this belief by allowing their children to learn sex education from negative institutions and from less innocent kids who are insecure enough to talk about their sexual experiences and non-experiences. The fact is, not telling kids about sex or giving them no positive information to replace or balance all the weird stuff they hear only makes kids angry, rebellious and willing to explore that which they do not understand. It gives them no feelings of reverence whatsoever for what is a very beautiful gift of God.

It is a sad position to be in really. Knowing and hearing all your life that sex is a horrible thing that you are "going to do anyway." Or hearing nothing until you are subjected to immature people talking about it by giving way too much information for your sensitive little ears. All kids want is direction, explanation and openness. But all they get is the negative. Thus, the only way to figure anything out is to do exactly what parents keep telling you not to do. No, I have no confessions to make. I simply want to say that the negative idea of sex is not helping our teens and young adults.

It does not make any sense to me why homeschooling parents allow these negative impressions to affect their children. This comes after the parents specifically decided to teach the children at home so they would avoid the problems in our destructive education system. A little openness and positivity about sex could go a long way to making a kid feel more secure as he or she grows up. Why does sex have to be a big, dirty secret when many of us know otherwise? Many of us know that it is a beautiful thing that only makes our marriages more wonderful. People always say that "sex is not everything." And I agree, but when you refuse to allow anything but the pessimistic views of sex into an adolescent's mind then you are telling them that sex is everything. Everything they are not allowed to understand and thereby the forbidden fruit that they will wonder about all the time. Then you teach them to feel guilty about sex and when they finally get to the age where they are out from under parental constraints you wonder why pregnancy occurred too soon. Wonder no more. Take a stand on the limb which I have walked out on and, like the anti-drug commercials always say, talk to your kids.

Only A Dream?

I have now heard the argument from many people that "Ron Paul cannot win." While I disagree, I would also like to direct said people to this article which contains a letter about why a Ron Paul candidacy will help America even if he does not win. Ron Paul opens a dialog which we have not seen in American politics for many, many years. He inspires people who are not interested in politics to join the process. Believe me, I've met them. Many of his supporters are people who have never been involved in politics before. I have met these people in real life, not on the internet. Ron Paul supporters are real people and we want Americans to start discussing the important things about the role of government in our lives, in foreign policy and in a host of other subjects.

Edit: And for those of you who cannot get my local news station, here is the coverage of our rally of which I am a part. The picture of me is not all that clear, but it's in there.

Revolution!

I have officially started helping with the 2008 election. I do not like any of the "major" candidates. The candidate I chose is one who gets excluded from debates, whose supporters are many and are sometimes called names, but who probably has a bigger grassroots wildfire going than most of the other candidates put together. That would be Ron Paul. Why do I like this guy? Simple, freedom. He speaks for the cause of liberty and getting government out of our lives. All the other candidates want to put more government into our lives. Ron Paul supports the Constitution and he is not interested in changing it. He also agrees with me on American interventionism. It is wrong.

So I joined the Ron Paul Revolution. This past weekend was a busy time for me. On Friday I painted Revolution signs. On Saturday I helped put literature together. On Sunday I got up really early in the morning so that I could be outside the area where the Republican debate in Iowa was held by 5am. Once there I stood in the pouring rain with a Ron Paul sign for 3 hours. The rain stopped maybe 45 minutes before I was done. In the meantime it had come down in buckets and the driving wind was so hard that my face hurt as the raindrops hit me. I was not alone in my endeavor. About 100 other Ron Paul supporters showed up to wave signs and chant. In contrast, the only other candidate with supporters -- 12 or so -- was Romney and they left at least a half hour before I did. When I left Ron Paul people were still there. We had people who came all the way from Texas just to help out with all the things going on in Iowa this week.

For my 15 minutes of fame, I was on the local news. There was a single clip of me holding a sign. That was in between some interviews and quotes by other Ron Paul supporters. Only one network covered our rally, but they gave us excellent coverage at least.

The whole experience was exhilarating. It feels good to care about politics again. I want to make our country a better place. I feel like the system would not be broken if we could vote Ron Paul through the primaries. Because then we would be saying that we do not like the way our government is doing things; that we the people are going to take back our government and send the reminder that we are supposed to be the ones in charge here. Go ahead, Google Ron Paul, you might like what you see.

Edit: I am leaving my link to the Mike Pence '08 site because it is still a beautiful dream and I still wish it could be. I do not know how I would vote if given a choice between these two men. Fortunately, it looks like I will not face that decision in 2008.

Perish The Very Scary Thought

I just found out that about a week ago one of my college friends suffered a massive stroke. The scary part is, it was not my college friend who graduated a year ahead of me at age 60. It was one who is only 23 years old. Wow. Life does throw strange things at young people sometimes. She was going to start grad school this year. So far, her right arm still will not work, but I guess she can walk a little now. At first she could not remember things, but it sounds like she is doing better with that. Also, her family says she can talk some. Anyway, I only wanted to post this to request prayers for her and her family. It's a tough time they are going through and I really feel for them. I cannot believe this could happen to someone so young. Except, in D.C. I did meet a highschooler who had had several strokes and lots of mini-strokes, she had a blood condition. It's so strange when things like this happen to young people. I really hope that C. gets better. She's a very determined person and if anyone could make her way through this at such a young age it would be her.

On A Personal Note

I guess I have not said anything about my life in a while. I am glad I have written about a few things that interest me and have avoided the random posts like the one I am writing now. On the other hand, it helps to let one's readers know that one is human once in a while.

I might be having some luck with jobs finally. I had a great interview a couple weeks ago. To date I know that my interviewer has called at least one of my references and sounded interested in me. At the interview she basically told me she thought I would be the woman for the job. She just needed to make sure my references check out and then will have to do a background check. We will see what comes of that.

I am not really worried about what to do with my life at this point. Not sure why. I just do not feel anxious about that. It would be nice to have some more friends around, but that will come in time. As for jobs and such, that will come in time as well. I have my bad days, but today is not one of them. Well, other than this horrible knot I have in my shoulder that is making my whole head hurt. Methinks some Icy Hot will help.

On my books, I am still working. I hope to have the second draft of my 2005 NaNo novel finished by October 31st. We will see.

Ah, Logic #13

Here is an excellent article for those who think the U.S. should go the way of socialized health care. I reiterate, submitting health care to the market will drive prices down and change the quality for the better. I am also glad that someone is willing to point out the big problem of socialized health care: distribution. How do you decide who gets treatment when? A centralized system is not a workable solution. Such a system would not be able to sell pencils properly. I do not think our third party payor system is good either, I just do not think centralizing is the answer. Decentralizing and allowing health care to stand up to the market would work so much better. We as consumers would know who the good doctors are and we could decide how much we wanted to spend on health care instead of having to go where someone else tells us to go and spend what they say we can spend. Since most of us agree that the government is woefully inefficient with its spending I would ask how anyone expects it to be able to deal with an issue as complex as health care? Furthermore, I have worked in health care. I have dealt with Medicaid, Medicare and many commercial companies. I still prefer the way the commercial companies do things to the government subsidiaries of Medicare and Medicaid. But freedom to choose health care options would definitely work better than the commercial insurance companies can.

Conditional Surrender

It is difficult to avoid talking about the most informally discussed subject in the U.S. Harry Potter. There's no reason for me to clarify my statement, so I will not. I was not sure if I would join the bandwagon and add to the hype, but after some consideration I have given in to the pressure. I give in on one condition only: that I get to say whatever I flippin' want about Harry Potter and all you Potter freaks out there can get offended if you like or just not read what I say. In short, conditional surrender never tasted so good.

We have all heard the endless arguments against Harry Potter. It interests me, however, to note that originally there was an enormous Christian backlash against the books. Then, right around the time the movies started coming out (I think) the backlash died. Suddenly, instead of backlash there was an enormous Christian welcome. People could not get over the "Christian symbolism" in Harry Potter. Harry is a "Christ figure." It's okay to let your kids read these books because they're like the next Narnia. The people who put Harry Potter next to The Lord of the Rings have obviously never read The Lord of the Rings. As for it being the next Narnia, uh. No.

I appreciate Harry Potter because it's a fun read. Yes, I read Harry Potter. I don't stand in line to get the first book on the shelf, in fact, I don't even purchase the hardcover editions. I have better things to spend my money on. I wait for a copy to become available at the library. It works quite well. Granted by the time I read the book I know all the spoilers, but I don't care. These books are not the end all and be all of storytelling to me. In fact, they're quite the opposite. They have very little substance. Half the time I feel like the entire plot was a waste. For example, in the fourth book, there was no reason that Voldemort had to go through all that trouble with the Tri-Wizard Tournament to kidnap Harry. He had a man on the inside. All he had to do was kidnap Harry. So easy. The teen angst gets old. In fact, I despise the 5th book. Then there's the prophecy. How cliche! Anyone who knows anything about the fantasy genre has been subjected to many, many prophecies. Oh yes, and Voldemort is undoubtedly the stupidest badguy ever having broken nearly every applicable rule of the Evil Overlord List. As for characterization, never have I seen so many flat characters in one series in my life. The best characters are Harry (and Harry is a total Gary Stu) and Hermione. Ron lost his personality after the second book. Any other character who has personality is a side character and only seems real because he or she has a bit part. Don't get me started on writing style. Yes, they are a fun, easy read.

The sudden mainstream Christian switch from discussing why these books are evil to embracing them wholeheartedly puzzles me. You would think no one had ever read a book before with Christian symbolism in it. I could sit here and name off at least a dozen other fairly recent books with Christian themes in them. Themes are better than symbolism which is about all the Harry Potter books contain. Harry is not a self sacrificial Christ figure. He only sacrifices himself when he fears losing a friend. That is not self sacrifice for the sake of others. It is not the same as what his mother did for him. She died for him because she loved him, not because she was afraid of losing him.

Edit (didn't think of this until later): In addition, one has to wonder if Harry would put so much effort into defeating Voldemort if the whole thing had not been placed on his doorstep so to speak. If he weren't the Chosen One, that is. And if Voldemort were not so entirely inefficient. Furthermore, there is no explicit moral code in these books. It strikes me as odd that Christians would be able to discover all sorts of symbolic material in the book, but fail to notice there are no absolutes concerning the behavior of the characters. So long as Harry and his friends are tormenting other kids, it's okay. And why, oh why, are all of Harry's enemies fat or greasy looking? I mean, doesn't that suggest that it is okay to mock obesity? Perhaps I am grasping at as many straws as the people who find Christian symbolism, but at least I can recognize a straw when I see it. End Edit.

I have no problem with the books themselves. I read them for fun. I simply have a problem with people who see things in them that are not there. What's wrong with weighing what you read and being able to point out both the good and the bad in it? Well, then again, I am a debater.

Fear And Greed

I have grown tired of listening to people talk about why socialism is the best system. Personally I think it is mainly envy that drives that discussion. Here is an interesting article that explains why higher taxes for wealthy people do not equal feeding the poor. In fact, they negatively impact economic growth. The article leaves out some key links (I'm a debater, I know). It does not delve into any of the moral issues that make socialism problematic. It simply provides an end point for the whole discussion. Worth reading, I'd say.

In Search of Spock?

I have been watching the first season of Star Trek: The Original Series on dvd for the past couple of weeks. It takes a lot longer to watch than The Next Generation. The episodes are longer for one thing. For the other, the show is so overwrought that I find it difficult to take in a lot at once. Shatnerian should be an adjective if it's not already -- my spellcheck tells me it's not (haha, and spellcheck is not a word either, so take that spellchecker!).

The characters in the Original Series are not as well developed as those in Next Generation. Take Captain Kirk for example, his biggest problem for the first third of season one is that he cannot sleep with his yeoman (who is female). Fortunately, he gets more interesting as the series continues. Still, he's no Piccard. Some of the depth of character and personality is missing from the Original Series. The plots are not as well developed either. They had many good ideas, but not as good of writers and directors. Still, I do find many of the characters to be entertaining. And one thing I like about the Original Series is the hokeyness that all the Shatnerian melodrama adds.

I had watched a few episodes as a kid and there are some things I never noticed about the characters before. First off, Captain Kirk's all out angst over being unable to be with his yeoman. He has a naturally romantic side to him that never occurred to me previously. He always goes for the soft spoken, feminine women and he appears to be quite a gentleman. Then, he is a pretty honest guy with little to no subterfuge in his soul. He is what he is. Unlike Piccard who hides his feelings and only says as much as is necessary, Kirk is all there. What you see is what you get. He has almost no malice, but he still has a fatal flaw which makes him more endearing as a character. He is a warrior almost to a fault. He tends to solve everything with his fists. There is no standing on ceremony with Kirk, he's either going to shake your hand or punch you. His predictability makes him much easier to deal with from his officers' standpoints.

Second, Dr. McCoy is a sensualist. Really and truly. He's like an underdeveloped Fyodor Pavlovich from The Brother's Karamazov. At least Kirk adds a romantic element to his exploits. McCoy just wants to get some. I actually find it to be hilarious because I never noticed that before. The other thing I do not get about McCoy is his hostility to Spock. After a certain number of times finding Spock to be correct you would think McCoy would calm down and listen. Other than that, he's a very forthright and outspoken sort of person. He says exactly what he thinks although he is a bit of an extremist. His opinions tend to be more on the extreme side, that is to say. Thus, he's not always correct in his ideas. But he tries.

Speaking of Spock, he is the third and last character I would like to discuss. If I found Spock alive today he would totally be my best friend. He is very calm and almost everything he says makes sense. Perhaps his lack of a sense of humor would get old. But he is not totally devoid of laughter. Once in a while he smiles a little. The thing I like most about Spock is that he brings a variant viewpoint to the table. He sums things up very carefully and usually accurately. He does not understand why humans think they are the only intelligent life out there. At the same time he is not offended by their sentiments toward himself. It would be illogical to take offense. After all, humans are subject to emotions, they cannot help it. He never seems too upset over McCoy's hostilities. Spock always has everyone's best interests at heart even when he forgets to take the effects of emotions into his calculations. That usually works against him, and that is where his fatal flaw comes into play. Spock refuses to see himself as in the wrong. He will always find a way of explaining his behavior as being entirely rational. This aspect of him is quite humorous.

I still have another half season to watch, so who knows what else I'll learn as I go along. If you ever see me running around yelling "Kahn!!" at the top of my lungs you'll know why.

Exclusive!

Have you ever been subjected to being pushed outside of a small, insular group of people? They are the elite in your church/school/college/dorm/workplace. They are the cool ones, the club you want to be a part of. Many people feel left out and sad about the fact that a certain group refuses to accept them. It seems like nothing and nobody can ever show said groups the error of their ways. We, the outsiders, always hope that somebody else who is cooler will exclude these elitists so they will learn their lesson. It rarely happens like that. The group goes on from junior high to highschool and then into college still thinking they're all that. They may never get it. Often the group revolves around some common subject like clothes or music or sports or following the latest trends in coolness. Sometimes it's the group that was not cool in junior high and highschool taking vengeance on the groups they thought were excluding them.

I have always been the person on the outside who can possibly be friends with individuals in such groups, but never accepted by the whole group. It bothers me that people get so exclusive. I hope I do not mirror their ways. I have my rather exclusive interests yes, politics. Wait. Politics is something we want everyone involved in. Scratch that. Writing, then. Wait. It's kind of a naturally inclusive thing because if you cannot write then you can read and thereby you are included. Hmm. I am sure I have been exclusive at some point in my life. We all have. I am sure you would like some examples from my past, but I am not here to point fingers I am here to discuss more important aspects of exclusion.

What is the best way to react when you come into contact with an exclusive group? I know I have reacted in many ways, I have felt utterly alone. I have walked away from the group sad and grumpy. I have been unable to enjoy myself. I have created my own strange group of "left outs." I have tried to sneak into the conversation that excludes me or change it's subject. I have challenged people's views with rather irreverent joking responses. Yes, I am half ashamed to admit that I can be very irreverent if I am pushed far enough. Sometimes I am not trying to be that way, the words just come out and only afterwards do I realize that I just shocked everyone in the room. Then I usually feel good about myself for a little while. Still, these are not the answers.

In response to these troubles it may be best to start by realizing that you are not alone. Everyone has felt left out at some point in their lives. Some of us more than others. Aristotle said that man is a "political animal" meaning that we are drawn toward associations. We want and need friends. These people who exclude us are exactly the same in their need for friendship. Some of them may not even know they are excluding others. It would be naive to think that all of them do not get it, but I am sure some do not. One reason for excluding others is our inherent desire to be unique. You've heard the phrase "everyone is special." And you have probably heard the response that if everyone is special no one is. We like to have something that other people do not have, but that other people want. For the excluder that would be the reason to push someone out of the group. For the excludee that would be the fact that he or she is left out.

I liken all this to the 1967 tv series, The Prisoner. In that show the main character Number 6 despises the fact that he is nothing more than a number forced to comply with rules he does not understand. He fights against the leadership on the strange island where he finds himself. He tries to escape the place several times. Human beings do not like being just another faceless number in the tides of society -- the island is analogous of society. Yet we uphold society and this number system by considering others nothing but numbers. At the same time we fight against the idea that we, ourselves, are nothing more than a number. Just as Number 6 regarded his fellow citizens with suspicion, believing that they were helping to keep him on the island as number to be ignored so we suspect our fellow human beings of not appreciating our own uniqueness. If we can keep a person who does not have our qualities from our group than somehow we are more unique.

Then again there are the people who are just plain unique and there's no way around that. Nobody likes those people. Nobody gets to know them. I would like to say I do, but often I do not. This is where the overwhelming exclusive factor kicks in with the best of us. It is called human nature and it is tainted. The truth is we do wrong things. We ignore our fellow human beings and justify it to ourselves. We do not like that person and we do not want to deal with him. We punish him for our own faults. Humans are flawed creatures, we cannot avoid that fact no matter how hard we try.

I have a name for what I consider to be the bottom line in all this: highschool forever mentality. Do not define yourself by what happened to you in highschool. Make up your mind to have a mature reaction. If you feel left out and shoved around realize that the people who are doing this to you have probably felt the same way as you feel and are now pursuing their own immature reaction to that. This does not give you an excuse to be immature. It gives you an excuse to be mature, to refuse to allow their actions to define yours. And it gives you an excuse to find some better friends! If you find that you have gone through life excluding others without realizing it -- or by justifying it to yourself -- then have the balls to own that to yourself. Try making friends with someone who is different from you. Who knows, you might like it. If you see one of those singularly unique people whom no one likes try talking to the person. After all, it is not even mature for three year olds to give others the "silent treatment" in an effort to get them to go away. We cannot by our own power overcome human nature, but we can still choose to do the mature thing. If you just cannot see that odd person as, well, a person than remember this: there is one thing in which we humans are all equal. We are all equally flawed.

Ah, Logic #12

I am getting to the point where I will post something interesting. In the meantime, here's a pretty decent point about limited government and why it's good.

Eight Secrets Meme

I'm going to be gone on vacation for a little bit. After that I have some serious stuff to talk about which I have been researching. In the meantime, you are welcome to enjoy the following eight secrets. I was tagged by Little Cicero to do this meme.

1. I am morbidly afraid of mascots. I never tell people this. I am also afraid to go to Disney World because of the people in Mickey Mouse suit and other character suits.

2. I often have dreams where I am late for work or have forgot my homework even though I do not currently have a job and I have not been in school for a while now.

3. I used to be terrified of making phone calls. Working in the insurance world cured me of that.

4. The only computer game that I will play is the Civilization series, either 3 or 4. I use them to get out pent up aggressive feelings. I learned to hate computer games because my siblings and I had a tendency to fight over the computer. I eventually came to consider computer games to be a waste of time. Not Civ 3 and 4, haha.

5. I have always wanted to take over the world. This is a general wish of serious poli-sci majors, but we don't talk about it.

6. I am a loner. This is no secret. The secret is that I almost never pass up an opportunity for social interaction because I really like being around people.

7. I have some very high strung personality traits. Around people I try to focus these traits into ditziness because it's funny.

8. My greatest joy is to make someone else laugh.

New Blog Title

I have changed my blog title. This time for real. I mean it. Now, first off, this title has nothing to do with race whatsoever. So get that out of your head. However, if you can figure out what movie I quoted in the title then you are allowed to criticize me for my entertainment choices.

I chose the new title because it reflects the slightly more humorous bent my blog has taken in recent months. I have also decided to bend my writing talents toward more cultural type ruminating. I will still talk politics, but in a more cultural sense. I want to address other things, such as religion and the effects that various religious movements are having or what they mean. I think this title will both keep me honest, and keep me remembering to be funny once in a while.

This change is for good. I'm not going to switch back to the old title. It was a good title when I needed it. I had a bad habit of hiding behind a facade. I will never completely shake that habit, but I think I understand how to defeat it now. I do not need a title to make me remember that anymore. So, welcome to the new title!

Real Sci-Fi

I remember when the movie Artificial Intelligence: AI first came out in theatres for several reasons. First, because I wanted to see it, but did not have the chance to go. Second, because that was literally a month before I went off to college. And last, because one of my friends did get to see it and he told me that it was good, but at the very end aliens come. He did not think it made any sense. I have since watched the movie a few times and would like to dispel the aliens rumor. If you pay any attention to the movie, whatsoever, it should be obvious that those are not aliens. I apologize for the spoiler. But one main theme throughout the movie was the inevitable downfall of mankind and the fact that A.I. could go on building themselves and living past the apocalypse. There were many clues that this would happen. I know, the A.I. at the end of the movie look weird, but they are A.I., not aliens. Randomly sticking aliens in at the end of the movie would destroy the thematic elements altogether. Steven Spielberg is way smarter than that.

To me structure is kind of an afterthought and I do not pay that much attention to it. However, one thing I find interesting about the movie is the three act structure. People thought the movie had several endings due to the three act structure. Apparently no one reads Shakespeare anymore. Each act has a different emotion and slightly different cinematography. They flow together very well, but you can see the points between each act. In each act the characters change and we see the main character, David (an A.I. child who can love), differently. In the first act he's a little boy living happily until he is deposed by his parents' real son. The only one who identifies with him at all is Monica, the mom. However, she is a bit of a weak character in that she cannot understand why he begins acting strangely and exhibiting signs of jealousy. In the second act he goes on a journey to become a "real boy" and his obsession with this idea begins to appear dangerous. In the third act, he seems to resolve his obsession a bit. He no longer looks to take others with him realizing it is a personal journey. He is the most patient sentient being you could possibly imagine after he gives up on his dream and then realizes that he might be able to have it after all.

Aside from the moral journey of David, the movie introduces an amazing complexity of moral questions. I think the obvious moral question is the one of using robots as a means of sexual satisfaction. This is aptly portrayed by the character Gigolo Joe, an A. I. lover model. The question is not answered, but the movie shows that human nature could make such a question into a huge and horrible problem. Joe ends up on the run because an angry husband manages to pin the murder of his wife (whom the husband killed) on the robot. This then is the dilemma, that an autonomous object, created by humans is blamed with the crime of human nature. Joe's portrayal is a parable of the entire movie in a sense. Humans have created these things to serve them, then humans turn against the very things they created, hating them for the services they provide.

At the same time the movie does not portray humans as being completely depraved. The moment when the audience rescue David and Joe from the Flesh Fair, believing David to be a human boy instead of an A.I. is remarkable for its show of compassion. These people are not so caught up in the venue of destroying the A.I. whom they hate that they ignore the plight of a fellow human. That scene arranges a dichotomy that we saw in the first act when Monica abandons David with tears in her eyes; and in the third act when David's creator, Prof. Hobby, realizes that his greatest creation is flawed. The A.I. at the end of the movie bring this dichotomy to fruition. They honor David because he knew humans and they did not. To them, mankind was the master they love and were never able to serve. They glean David's memories and see the wickedness of humans for themselves. Still, they obviously believe that they are inferior to humans. They even try to find ways to preserve humans or bring them back, out of this strange desire to serve that which would have destroyed them.

A.I. was 12 years in the making and I think for good reason. It is possibly the best science fiction movie ever made in the U.S. I would say so. For that reason, I think it is fairly unpopular. People do not like real, hard sci-fi. They like popular science fiction, like Star Wars. Things need to blow up. The more artistic, deeply thematic science fiction -- the kind I hope to write -- is not as easily understood in the popular medium of film. Spielberg did some of his best work ever making this movie, and I think it deserves to be remembered as a classic among today's films.