I've been a proud employee of the Federal Government for 25 years. I work to protect the health of animal populations and think that I have an important job. I must live by a higher set of ethical guidelines and am held to a standard that is greater than a lay person. That is why I am so upset why our congress is shirking their constitutional responsibility and using procedural parlor tricks to try and repeal a law that was passed by congress and found valid by the Supreme Court.
Congress has a responsibility to fund a budget for the government. It's a relatively easy prospect and when you look at the business side of the government, the 17% of the total budget that funds programs and people (other than the military) you see a fairly simple picture.
1. You understand that the way to balance the Federal budget isn't to continually cut the 17% and ignore the 83%.
2. The budget process is a constitutional necessity.
I resent the fact that my job is being held hostage by a small group of congressmen that are using procedural processes to try and re-litigate an existing law.
They are shirking their responsibility. Congress has a duty to pass a budget by October 1 to fund operations. It shouldn't be a political cudgel.
This whole shutdown is bizarre. The Affordable Care Act is a law, certified by the Supreme Court. It is not related to the budget. If a member of congress has a problem with that law, they should change it via the normal process and not hold my job hostage like a group of spoiled children who can't get their way.
I got into a discussion about ‘Male Privilege’ in comics and
nerd/geek culture in general. I mostly agreed with this article, but would contend that the world is changing
and geeks and gamer girls are gaining their own voice and earning respect… in
some circles … by guys who aren’t dicks.
The main tenant of that article is that geeks/gamers will : “insist
that they treat women exactly the same as they treat guys – all the while
ignoring the fact that their behavior is what’s making the women uncomfortable
and feeling unwelcome in the first place.”
I believe that this isn’t a black and white issue. I would counter that everyone is responsible
for their behavior and the tenants for sexism and prejudice don’t arise because
of geek culture, those attributes arise elsewhere and are magnified by the
insular nature of a predominately introverted fandom.
I’m an adult and have made no illusion that my past has
prejudiced my outlook on life, but I also do my best to treat everyone as an
equal and listen to other opinions before I talk. When I read an article like the one mentioned
above, I see another kind of prejudice, that of the overly sympathetic male:
What? How can you say
that? That article seemed very
sympathetic to woman’s issues. Yeah, I
thought so too, until I read the last sentence.
“And when you check back on Friday, I’ll provide you with
some concrete applications on how being cognizant of male privilege will
improve your relations with women.”
Am I wrong, or is this entire article a blueprint on a
subterfuge? If you’re worried about
improving your relations with women (i.e., how do I better get laid), then you’re
doing it wrong. What you should be
worried about is how your interpersonal skills allow you to function in an ever
changing world. That last sentence turned
that whole article on its ear for me.
This was nothing more than a blueprint for how the jerk gamer/geek can
satisfy his lady friend and continue to be a self-righteous douchebag.
The truth is that there are plenty of inroads that women
have made in geek/gamer culture. During the middle ages, zealots desecrated art by chopping off exposed genitalia or covering it up with a fig leaf. At the
turn of the century, I was playing Everquest and one of my guildmates was a
woman who played a male avatar in order to avoid the sexist bullshit. Fast forward to today, where I play Guild
Wars with my wife and 2-3 other strong women who comprise our core group. Now, that’s not to say that women have it
easy. Sexism still exists everywhere…
The article on male privilege seems to relate the
objectification of females in comics and games as proof that women are treated
as second class, but it also either ignores or brushes aside cases of male
objectification in the same art form:
Yes, fantasy and science fiction literature has a long
history of placing women in unrealistic manners of dress, but I would contend
that all art places women and men alike in unrealistic manners of dress. If you are looking for a realistic woman
warrior in a fantasy series, look to Game of Thrones:
This scene says a lot about the whole topic. However, this topic isn’t black and
white. In fantasy and science fiction you
can have both Brienne of Tarth and Catwoman. The medium is there to explore social issues. Star Trek wasn't a great science fiction story because of the short skirts and special effects. It was a study of the human condition set through a science fiction lens that helps one see that condition through a unique perspective.
The core issue here revolves around women in geek and gamer
culture. While it’s true that women are
an oddity, an unicorn if you will.
However, women also have a role in this society just as they do in every
other aspect of the world around us.
Team Unicorn, a group of beautiful actresses who also love video games,
comics, and Star Wars exists as a message to other women out there. You don’t have to wear sack cloth and hide
behind an asexual persona in order to thrive in a world of fandom:
Yes, fantasy and science fiction can objectify men, women,
and just about anything in an effort to create an art form that many hold near
and dear to their hearts. As citizens of
this planet, we need to move to a place where we cherish everyone’s opinion. We need to find that scrap of something to
adore and not be afraid of showing people that child-like glee. Don’t worry how to be politically correct in
order to ‘improve your relations with women’.
That won’t work. Strive to be
open minded, or as Will Wheaton would say; ‘Be awesome’.
It's that time of year when I want to drive with the windows open and listen to music just a little louder than I should. In the past I would make a mixed tape. In later years I would burn a CD. Today, I just link to a series of YouTube videos (see below), although the ads get annoying, or I create a playlist for my iPod.
The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules.
I tried to include music from this decade, although I had to insert some songs that just are ingrained in my summer listening mythos (i.e., J. Giles and The Rolling Stones and Roxy Music).
In response to the whole hullaballoo about the NSA data
mining operation, I wanted to throw my 2-cents in the debate. I know that some of my more liberal minded
friends might disagree, but I believe that Edward Snowden should be arrested
and prosecuted for divulging classified information. It’s very simple really, he leaked
information that was classified and that is punishable under our existing laws.
Now, let’s delve into what was leaked. The government is using ‘big data’ obtained
from internet providers and phone companies (the line is very blurry there) to
conduct meta-analysis and look for trends and indicators. Think an attempt at Psychohistory from the
Foundation novels of Asimov, or the big computer in the TV show Person of
Interest. Is mining of that type of data
wrong for a government to do?
My answer may surprise some.
I would say no. First of all, the
data in question is data that has been released to the ‘verse from the individual. In other words: “From here to the eyes and the ears of the
'Verse, that's my motto, or it might be if I start having a motto.”
In other other words.. should we have any expectation of
privacy once we release something to the internet? I would say no. Once we post on a message board, send an
eMail, or update our Facebook status, we should have no expectation that
information isn’t available to the ‘verse as a whole.
“There is no news. There is only the truth of the signal.
What I see. And, there's the puppet theater the Parliament jesters foist on the
somnambulant public.”
We have a flawed system of government, but one that is based
on some checks and balances. We need to
abide by the laws around secrecy and confidentiality and then work on our
leaders to enact better means for us to protect and restrict access to the data
that they have access to. However, don’t
ever think that you have privacy in this world when you access the internet and
place a camera on your life with Facebook and other social media. Don’t canonize a traitor for breaking the law
and exposing something that’s been evident since well before 2001.
There has been a dearth of good music in the new millennia. There have been some bright spots. Porcupine Tree and Spock’s Beard have satisfied
my love of Progressive Rock. There have
been some good folk bands and a few good albums peppered the landscape, but
that’s about it.
In the late 80s I lived in New England and enjoyed the
Boston music scene. There were some
great bands. The Neighborhoods and The Zulus were staples at places like The
Channel and TT The Bears.
We would go to Providence to see bands like Husker Du
at The Living Room. One show at the
Channel in Boston, we saw Soul Asylum open for Husker Du (awesome show).
So, fast forward 23 years and an older father of two teenage
girls is surfing the internet and comes across a band that scratches the same
itch that those bands of the late 80s and early 90s scratched. I ran across a
band from Kitchner, Ontario, comprised of three teenagers who actually rocked
hard, Courage My Love.
Why am I writing about this band? Well, because they renew my faith in
music. The creative force behind this
group is twin sisters, Phoenix and Mercedes Arn-Horn. These kids write their
own music and lyrics, which is highly commendable in this age of pre-packaged,
sanitized music. Their first EP, For
Now, has 7 very good songs that were penned when these girls were 17-18 years
old. They are two years older than my
eldest daughter. Wow, I feel old.
At any rate, these kids are worth a listen. They have a ton of talent and potential.
Genetically Modified Organisms, or GMOs, are primarily used
in biological and medical research, production of pharmaceutical drugs,
experimental medicine (e.g. gene therapy), but in recent years they have been a
part of agricultural production (e.g. golden rice, resistance to herbicides).
The term "genetically modified organism" does not always imply, but
can include, targeted insertions of genes from one species into another. This can be very useful in that some cells
can be induced to produce substances that are wonderfully beneficial to
man. However, that benefit is being
overshadowed by a misinterpretation of what is actually happening with GMOs in
modern agriculture.
We have selectively bread species of animal or plant for
centuries to express certain characteristics.
That manipulation in and of itself is genetic modification. Bacon has the delicious proportion of fat and
muscle through those manipulations.
There isn’t a geneticist out there producing a pig who’s fat produces
maple syrup or making a tomato plant with the addictive qualities of cigarettes
(i.e., Tomacco plants).
That would be
worth serious scrutiny. No, what we have
today is quite nefariously different. We
have companies who trademark the genetic sequence of certain plants as a way to
corner the market on those commodities (soy beans, corn, etc…). That is the vast majority of GMO food that is
out there today AND it is relatively harmless.
What is more important than the call for labeling of GMOs,
which in my opinion miss the mark and only cause potential trade barriers, is
that these genetic patents on plants cause monopolies in the agricultural
industry. Those monopolies then dictate
to their farmers what and where to plant.
Labeling isn’t the issue. The
issue is corporate welfare for agricultural companies trying to corner the
market on our food supply. That doesn’t
require a label, but rather regulation.
