record profits, disgruntled postal workers, and friedman is an idiot...

here's a big shocker...record profits for oil companies at the end of last year following the hurricanes. natural disasters and the hysteria they created allowed these schmucks to run up the prices at the pump and blame it on disabled refineries (sp?)... now, i'm just as for gauging hummer driving assholes as the next person, the problem is that high gas prices hurt the people that can afford it the least the most... it is the same reason i am torn when it comes to higher gas taxes...it becomes the poor man's tax, yet another way for the american elite to hold onto a bigger chunk of the pie then they deserve. it is exactly because of that that i wonder how some decision makers at exxon can sleep at night...not only are they stealing from the poor and giving to the rich (the american way), but they used a tragic disaster to line their own pockets even further. note to alberto...take 'em down...

another disgruntled postal worker went, well, postal...7 dead at a sorting plant near santa barbara, including the shooter. i really can't put my finger on what makes postal workers crazy...maybe there is something in the adhesive of letters and stamps. it does make for a great song though, disgrunteled postal worker...look it up...

i am reading friedman's new book wherein he apparently thinks he is a genius for realizing the world is flat thanks to technological advancements. welcome to the world we've all been living in for the last decade asshole. he also apparently has bought into the dying economic superpower bullshit and believes that it is possible for us to keep leading the pack. while he makes some good points, he tends to go astray once he points something out.

globalization is a bad thing for the united states, and it tends to be a bad thing for the vast majority of people in developing countries...but at some point we stopped listening to abraham lincoln and no longer recognized labor's superiority over capital...we made capital god...and so now we imagine our quality of life is getting better as the elites all over the world fleece the rest. friedman's answer for american workers losing their jobs because the manufacturing infrastructure in this country is collapsing around us...inevitably to leave us as has-beens...learn more. yea...it's just that simple...train yourself for really high tech jobs and you will be fine...go get another degree...and then you can move up to starbucks with the other graduates that can't find work because there aren't enough white collar jobs to go around as it is...that of course is if you are lucky enough to be born into the right family and right nieghborhood so you can afford to get advanced degrees. god help us.

we were not told one thing that we could learn...

journalists at war, supporting jim frey, hamas, and the yellow lamp...

another journalist casualty of the war in iraq...and another example of how poorly we treat our brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, neighbors and friends in the military. i was on vacation, so i didn't catch much of the news this weekend, when i did there was a whole lot about an nbc reporter injured and in critical condition in iraq. normally i am all about the attention when something bad happens to someone, normally i feel it is inappropriate to take out anger on such an occassion...but i can't do it anymore. we have thousands of kids coming home in flag-drapped coffins, thousands more coming back without a limb, without sight, without the ability to live the life you and i take for granted...and we don't even pay for them to get the treatment they need. we give them a few thousand bucks and a free ticket to college and say thanks for giving the last full measure so that we can crush the ideals this country was founded on. we give them a moment of silence on the news, we watch as their names and pictures scroll across the screen and we get teary eyed because we realize that they were just babies...and now they are gone. but a reporter gets hurt by a roadside bomb as countless troops have...and he gets days of coverage, life stories and "thoughts and prayers" from the media. where are the days of coverage, life stories and thoughts and prayers for the kid down the street with a prosthetic limb now? where are they for the family of the 19 year old kid from the rural south that will never get to take advantage of the g.i. bill? shame on you for glossing over the men and women in the armed forces and giving days of attention to one of your own...maybe if you had done your job from the start your friend wouldn't have been in that position in the first place...

jim frey apparently got roasted on oprah...bullshit if you ask me. here we have a guy that wrote what apparently is a great story that has inspired and moved lots and lots of people. and suddenly he is public enemy number one because he called it a memior instead of a novel? bullshit. athletes cheat and we look the other way and pay them hundreds of millions of dollars for their lies, politicians lie and we sit down and thank them for spitting on us and ask them if they could please kick us while they are at it...and a struggling writer, a former drug abuser, writes a compelling story and sends it off to publishers who want no part of it...so he stops calling it a novel, and starts calling it a memior...suddenly it is picked up, and he is a best-seller. well good for you jim frey...your lies didn't hurt me, they really didn't hurt anyone else...no kid is running out injecting himself with horse hormones because you embellished...in fact, your lie just got people reading again. don't take oprah's shit...maybe she's forgotten what it's like to be a struggling artist...either way, she missed the fucking point...it was a good story, it inspired you lady, it inspired thousands of others...where is the harm?

i saw a sign this weekend....basically wondering why we are all up in arms over jim frey lying to us over the section of the library his book should be placed in when our president and government tells more lies that do more damage daily...just something to ponder...

hamas won. if i am to believe the media and the white house, nobody saw this coming...except anyone with half a brain that has paid any attention to the world over the last, oh, i don't know, 30 years, saw this coming. the part i love about it is the response of the united states...cut off aid. but why do they hate us? we beg and plead and prod for them to hold elections, to become democracies and allow the people to choose who they want their leaders to be and how they want to be governed...and so they do...and we respond with "well, we meant only if you pick the other guy...we aren't a big fan of this group...so if you want them, well, then great, you can have them, because we don't want to interfere with democracy, but...uh...now you starve and die from a cold." here comes another generation of evil-doers...

i was enthralled by a painting this weekend...the yellow lamp...and i forget the artist (which is bad, i know). a faceless woman standing leaning on a table with a yellow lamp, bay windows behind her looking out onto the cityscape, and a faceless man in a suit staring out those same windows...it made me sad...it made me really want to know what it was that he just couldn't do anymore...why was it over, where would he go, where would she go? i don't know why...but damn did i love that painting.

the bill of rights disintegrates because freedom just gets in the way...

the french response, illegal immigration, moratoriums on death, and snow...

sadly enough this is post no. 100 in random thoughts from a random cracker...if you are reading, thanks for paying attention i guess...and get out and vote, for a third party, for a candidate that has never been associated with politics before...if you aren't reading this...then start.

ah the french...how i love the french government, how i always have...what with their behind the scenes cooperation with the nazis, their racist policies (and for those that will inevitably feel this means i think the american government has done no wrong ever...the problem is i just don't have time to address it all). president chirac (who, if there is ever another attack on french soil i hope will hold a news conference, slap his hands to his cheeks and declare "sacre blu...invaders!") implied that france may be willing to respond to a state-sponsored terrorist attack with un-conventional means (i.e. nukes). on a very heartless level i suppose it makes sense...kill off or radiate all those that don't like you and the problem is solved (nevermind the damage to future generations, the environment, your soul - if you have one, and the like)...i hope it just deterrence talk, but what if it isn't? how frightening is it that leaders may be considering nukes to combat vast criminal enterprises...and what do you want to bed gw is pissed that his arch-nemesis beat him to the punch?

the recent crack down on illegal immigration is running into problems (go figure)...they ran out of beds. the border patrol has gone nuts cracking down on mexicans desperately trying to better their families' lives by working jobs that americans find beneath them for less money than any american would take...and the result is an even more overloaded court system and overcrowded prisons. for what? i used to be all about cracking down on illegal immigration (mainly because i felt it inherently unfair to those that went through the painstaking process of going about it the legal way), but living in a border state opened my eyes a bit. i was at the federal courthouse yesterday...most of the defendants were clearly border crossers, many needing interpreters...all they wanted was to live here, they dreamed of a better life for their children, and we send them away for it. trust me...the ones we are catching are not terrorists...we might be nabbing the occassional drug dealer/smuggler/theif/murderer...but not enough to justify what we are doing to otherwise innocent people. as i remember from the bad news bears (the not as good one)..."let them play"...

a bill in california to put a moratorium on the death penalty for 2 years while it is examined was halted by committee...so if you had your hopes up that california might join the likes of my great homestate, illinois, in at least holding off on state-sanctioned killing...sorry to bring bad news. todd spitzer, an assemblyman elected by god-fearing republicans in orange county stated that the bill was killed because "the death penalty is not abused or unfairly carried out in california." um...yea...about that mr. spitzer...see, death penalty opponents' point is that the death penalty itself is unfair and abusive...and when you throw on the interesting manner in which it is used (cough, cough...race...cough, cough...class...cough, cough) then you have an obviously inherently abusive and unfair system. but then the entire criminal justice system is slanted against the poor and minorities...look at disparaties in sentencing...look at the time you get for crack vs. cocaine...it ain't right...

on a side note...i find it amusing in a sick, disturbing way, that republicans are all about the death penalty...the god-fearing folks...the ones that are hell-bent against "murdering" a fetus...are the same ones that are all about knocking off any and all criminals...and defending the deaths of innocents overseas because they happened to be in the same village as a few evil-doers...hmmm, something tells me if your god doesn't want you to kill, he doesn't want you to kill, and that is that.

another side note...i also find it amusing that the media uses "moratorium" every single time a state is talking about holding off on the death penalty...alanis morrissette would think it's ironic...

it finally snowed in taos...and did it ever. a foot and still coming down in the wee hours of the morning...i think that's why i awoke about 3:30 am...i knew. perhaps a respite at my church will take the blues out of living in this god-forsaken state...if even just for a few hours. thank you ulr...keep it comin...

your increasingly long embraces...are they saying sorry or please?

democrats on the attack, raising wages, and arrogance...

bring out the cavalry...the democrats are on the attack. what a perfectly inept system we have developed when running for president requires so much attention so far ahead of the next presidential election. al gore has resurfaced...the man who couldn't even carry his home state...count him out.

and there goes hilary running for the presidential nomination, er, i mean reelection out of new york.speaking of mrs. clinton, i think she mistook herself for her husband and thought that she had been accepted by blacks in the same way bill was embraced a decade ago. speaking in harlem she told the crowd how she really felt about the republicans...saying the house of representatives was "being run like a plantation"...and then following it up with "you know what i'm talking about" (with the emphasis on "you"). ooo, not good hilary. a wealthy, perpetually powerful white lady comparing the united states congress to the horrors of slavery as if she had any idea what it is like to be black and on the wrong end of a plantation...and that it is anything like the pampered life of a member of congress...go ahead and keep that foot in your mouth for awhile. how about a populist candidate for once?

kennedy got a taste of his own socks too, and the episode pointed out how ludicrous our current process for confirmation of judicial appointees is...kennedy was all over alito for joining some organization in college that didn't like the influx of immigrants and foreigners into school...somebody politely pointed out to eddie that he was a member of an organization banning women. and does dui kennedy really want to get into indiscretions of youth? i would think he would want to stay as far away as possible of talk of the past. to tell you the truth, i don't give two shits about what organizations either of these schmucks were when they were in their 20's...people do all kinds of stupid shit back then, they are arrogant, think they know all the answers, and looking for someone to hate...and then they grow up (we hope).

still, it pointed out just how ridiculous this process has become...it is all about Roe and what a nominee thinks of Roe...and if they don't agree with me on Roe then i must find something in their background that shows they are a bigot or a murderer or hitler or a god-forsaking hippie, etc...so this man gets marched out there and ransacked over comments he made when he was young and stupid. it's ludicrous. heard an interesting argument on the radio for doing away with Roe this morning...from a pro-choice person...or as i like to call them, anti-life folks (with the other side becoming anti-woman)...said we need to get rid of this decision because it has completely stopped this country from having any sort of intelligent discussion about abortion. he's right, there is no middle ground anymore...which is unfortunate for democrats because as long as this remains a hardline issue, they will continue to suffer for it in elections...

bill richardson wants to rage minimum wage in new mexico...i have no idea what to, but good for him. here is what i don't get about folks worried about the cost of their sandwiches going up if minimum wage goes up...or of any products increasing if worker's wages are increased...why not just take it from the folks at the top? does anybody really need 50 million a year while the assembly line folks get squeezed out? hell, take half of that away and you can give 10,000 employees an average raise of $2,500 a year. of course that will never happen....but i can dream...

american arrogance makes another appearance compliments of the white house. an air strike in pakistan killed 4 al queda members...problem is it also knocked off about 15 innocent villagers, children included. pakistan is pissed, doesn't want flyovers anymore...the people are marching against us...again. what is the white house's response? not an apology for the lose of innocent life...not a promise to improve our methods to protect civilians as much as humanly possible...nope, instead the standard "we will continue to fight the war against terrorism as we see fit and people will die"...basically a shoulder shrug and a "yea, so, what's the problem...we got a couple of the evil-doers...isn't that good enough?" i don't know about anyone else, but i still can't understand why folks in that corner of the world hate us so...

put down that weapon or we'll all be gone...

is the presence of homosexuality really that emasculating?

back to another of my recurring themes...hating the gays...

i was on my way to work this morning and was listening to imus in the morning (i got tired of the one cd in my car). they were discussing the golden globes from last night and focused in on brokeback mountain (a movie i still deperately need to see, except that i don't feel like spending a day's pay on 2 to 3 hours of movie when it'll be a buck in a month). one of the usual characters (i can't remember which one) went on a monologue about the movie, which he referred to as "fudgepack mountain"...oh so clever...the funny part was how it started off...

"i have nothing against it, i have nothing against homosexuality, but..." ah yes, the classic "i'm a bigot and about to say something incredibly ignorant and i just wanted to give you a head's up it was coming" line. anyways, he followed it up with informing the listeners that while he had no problem with homosexuality, he refused to spend a few hours of his time watching a movie that involved two men tongue kissing...you know, just as some may choose not to see war movies, he chooses not to see movies involving homosexuality...not that there is anything wrong with that.

is it seriously that emasculating to a man to even witness an act of homosexuality? i will never understand how someone else's sexual escapades are a problem for you...does it make me a deviant because i saw 8 mm? i just don't get it...if you aren't gay it really won't make your genetalia turn inside out and breasts sprout from your chest if you witness a gay act...even if it is the gayest since gay came to gay town...and it doesn't make you tough or more of a man to refuse to witness such an act.

i think it's time women start demanding more male on male incidents in hollywood...just to counterbalance the ridiculous drooling jackasses that are always hooting at any hint of lesbian action...

but maybe this guy was right...afterall, the good Rev. Fred Phelps has taken it upon himself and his congregation to inform the world that american soldiers are dying because men are sharing their teams from the inseam with each other. not a big deal normally, but this asshole has decided his forum will be pickets...at funerals...for young men and women returning home from combat in caskets. guess the time honored american tradition of picketing homosexual funerals just wasn't getting his point across. freedom of speech and assembly... sometimes it is so beautiful it brings a tear to your eye.

apparently jonathon rhys meyers won a golden globe for his portrayal of elvis...i was not in the least bit emasculated by the excitement i felt in hearing the news.

i may be sick, but you're the disease...

mannish boy: the horrors of living today...

when i was a young boy, at the age of five, my mother said i was gonna be the greatest man alive...but now i'm a man, way past 21...best believe me baby, i had lots of fun...i'm a man...

saw a report this morning there are some schmucks running around (i believe florida...but i could be wrong, it may just be my natural prejudice against the state) beating homeless men with bats for no reason whatsoever. one of the homeless men died...what the fuck is wrong with people? i suppose this is a natural outcome of treating the homeless and poor in this country as subhuman. it made me think when i blew off the guy asking for change outside 7-11 this morning...felt like i was doing my little part in making the homeless feel less-than-human...not my finest hour...not a proud moment...

i'm a man, i'm a full grown man, i'm a natural born lovers man, i'm a rolling stone, i'm a hoochie coochie man...

in yet another example of disgusting good old fashioned american ingenuity and money making at it's finest a bus company is providing tours of hurricane ravaged new orleans. that's right, for only 25 dollars you can see the scene of death and destrution...the superdome, where bodies lay baking in the sun for children to play on...the streets where bloated corpses floated down. that's my idea of a vacation. and you even get to do it at ground level, unlike gw and his beloved "brownie" (who, in all fairness, was actually doing a heck of a job...just not at providing relief). ah...making money off of horror...is there anything more american than that? they are giving 3 bucks of each ticket to hurricane relief...gee, thanks.

sitting on the outside, just me and my lady...you know i make the move honey, come up to hours later...ain't that a man?

as if it isn't hard enough for women to live up to the media's ideal of beauty now they have another thing to contend with...sagging breasts brought on by workouts. my girlfriend maria has taken to trying to get more women to wear sports bras in order to stop the 135 meters of traveling up and down they do when running a mile because it causes irreversible sagging. you just can't win...if you run, your breasts sag and us pig men will not want to see them...if you don't, us pig men will think you are fat and not want to see any bit of you. i vote for no running...let your curves come back...although i must admit this pig man loves a girl in a sports bra...

the line i shoot, i will never miss...when i make love to a woman, she can't resist...all you little girls sitting out at that line, i can make love to you woman, in five minutes time...ain't that man?

bode miller apologized for telling 60 minutes he has raced drunk before and may just do it again. i really don't understand why the media got in such a hizzy over this...it's not like he skis with other racers on the course, or is driving a car or anything...and it's skiing. this is a sport that has always been built around individuals, crazy individuals, risk takers, free spirits...the gods of skiing have always been the burnout washing dishes so he/she can ski daily...are we really that uptight that we are horrified to find out a ski racer has gotten to the hill in the morning still tipsy from the night before? that's what these folks do...it's why we love them...get over it. not to mention they are sponsored by beer companies...if i'm a marketing exec at one of those miracle hangover pill companies, i'm on the phone to his agent. and to bode...bring home a gold...and do it drunk...damn the man.

i spell him, h...i...m...that mean mannish boy, i'm a full grown man, i'm a natural born lovers man, i'm a rollin stone, i'm a man child, i'm a hoochie coochie man...

speaking of olympians, everyone should be rooting for a kid from colorado this year, jeremy bloom. bloom was set to be a standout at u. of colorado in football, lightening fast, good hands...the fans and coaches loved him. problem was bloom happens to be one of the best mogul skiers in the world. well, the ncaa was having none of that...and in their back-ass-wards rules, he couldn't do both. see, the ncaa won't let any athlete take money from anyone for any sport...even if it is not the sport you compete in in college...even if you aren't on scholarship...and skiing is expensive. so to train for skiing (where he has a shot at a gold) he had to take on sponsors, just like every other skier in the world...and the ncaa told him that means you can't play football son...you need to choose. so he gave up his love of football to ski...root for this kid, if for no other reason, then to give the finger to the ncaa...

don't hurt me child...

yet another reason to hate this town...

so i pulled into my driveway for lunch today and saw someone take off down the other end of the driveway dropping one of my roommate's duffle bags on his way out...naturally i took off after him (in my new shiny shoes and pinstriped suit...hardcore, i know). a neighbor was walking home and got ready to tackle him about a half block away when the guy pulled a knife (which ended up being one of my miracle blad steak knives) and so everyone backed off and i relayed to the 911 dispatcher where the guy was headed. unfortunately no cops were in the immediate vicinity so he was long gone by the time the five oh showed up.

well...turns out he broke my roommates door to get in, ransacked her room and was in the process of doing the same to mine. apparently didn't find much to satisfy him (nevermind the gold jewelry and other little expensive gadgets...say a laptop...cellular phone...you know, stuff actually worth money). the bag had a bunch of cd's in it...and they were mine, so you know they weren't worth much.

joe p. burglar is lucky my roommate didn't come home...she would've fucked him up (for those of you that know her...no explanation is necessary)...

anyways...i had a bad day. i moved to this neighborhood to get away from this shit...i mean, the swat team on my porch a few years ago (that's a hell of a story too) was kind of the final straw. of course it inevitably means i get broken into here. gotta hand it to the guy...he had balls...semi-busy street, the lunch hour, nosy old neighbors.

i should have handed him a card...he'll be needed it someday, probably sooner rather than later.

anyways...here is the part of it that really pisses me off...the guy was hispanic/latino. and a few hours later i walked into a 7-11, noticed a medium build hispanic man with gloves on...i kept an eye on him. that upsets me. so thanks asshole.

needless to say at least i haven't immediately slipped back into prosecutor mind set...which i suppose is a good sign. and the fucker scared the shit out of my cat...which really upset me.

i really need to get out of this fucking town...

alito, wiretaps and why cruelty to animals never pays...

here we go again...another round of bickering and posturing over a nominee for the supreme court. another week of democrats and republicans dodging the real reason they will/won't vote to confirm alito...more "dodging" of ludicrous questions by a judicial nominee who shouldn't be expected to answer them anyways. for once, wouldn't it be nice to hear a news conference go something like this...

joe senator (D-State A): there is no question that judge alito is qualified, the ABA told me so. he went to good schools, is a talented legal mind, writes clear opinions which support his conclusions, has 15 years of experience on the federal bench, is a family man, and i hear a hell of a guy. but there is a problem....see, NARAL just contributed $10,000 to my reelection fund and they seem to think he is the antichrist and that his confirmation would immediately mean abortions would be illegal and punishable by public disembowelment, sending civilization spiralling back into the stone age...and i really need that money...so in the interest of special interests, i cannot vote for him because he is conservative.

jane senator (R-State B): there is no question that judge alito is qualified, the ABA told me so. he went to good schools, is a talented legal mind, writes clear opinions which support his conclusions, has 15 years of experience on the federal bench, is a family man, and i hear a hell of a guy. but that really isn't why i like him...hell, that could describe a lot of judges i wouldn't dream of voting for. see, the christian coalition just contributed $10,000 to my reelection fund...and they seem to think that if Roe is not overturned this year the gays will take over the world, child molesters will run rampant and baby murderers will dance with glee over the bodies of their victims...and i really need that money, so i have to vote for him because he is conservative (plus the big GW told me to).

wouldn't some honesty in this conversation be nice for once? stop "dodging" the issue senators and admit that "judicial philosphy" means political idealogy, specifically abortion. (and message to democrats...making abortion cut and dry issue is bad politics and is costing you votes every year).

as for judicial nominees "dodging" questions (a favorite of senators on tv)...those questions should never be asked of a judge anyways. i understand that most senators are not the brightest folk (if they were they would be making more money in the private sector instead of trying to vote themselves pay raises)...but do we really want a judge to spell out to the world exactly how he/she will rule on any case that comes before him in the future. i mean...why even bother having a supreme court then, why not just set up 9 slots and have congress decide where each will fall on all hotbutton issues...it will save a lot of money, and get rid of a bunch of lawyers.

more talk of wiretaps in the news...i have a suggestion for a system to be used rather than the accountable to noone administration wiretaps. how about this...we put together a secret panel of judges who meet in secret, hear cases in secret, and make decisions in secret. fedeal law enforcement agencies can come before them and say they need wiretaps because they can't figure it out otherwise and these are really bad people...then that court grants a "warrant" for wiretaps approximately 99% of the time without the public having any clue about any of it. would that make you feel better? because that is the system the administration sidestepped...doesn't seem like such a big deal anymore does it? hell, it's really just a money saver...

some old man in new mexico caught a mouse in his home and decided to dispose of it...and by "dispose of it" i mean place it on a pile of burning leaves while it was still alive. well, the mouse got even by running back into his home, fur ablaze...the house was eventually gutted by the fire. payback's a bitch...

if we're searching for peace how come we still believe in hatred as the catalyst...

coal mines, myspace molesters and pat robertson...

another coal mine accident, another couple days with the nation on the edge of it's seat...and another handful of blue collar workers who never came home from the job site. something that always intrigues me about these mini-disasters is that they never seem to spark a discussion as to why we need so many damn coal mines in this country to begin with. i don't quite understand why we never begin to question why we need to send so many people into the bowels of the earth to extract a black rock that will keep that lightbulb lit whilst we sit in the other room in shorts and short-sleeves in the middle of winter. perhaps losing a handful of men every few years should make us think of safer, more eco-friendly ways to obtain the energy we "use" each year. (note the term "use" is meant to include disgusting wastes...but that is the american way).

another thing that bothered me about the reports...i heard one of the families immediately jumped to talk of a lawsuit. what does it say about our culture when that is one of our first thoughts when a loved one is killed? not much.

apparently this site has become a favorite for those that love to have intercourse with young boys and girls...such as a friend of mine who first lures them with candy. (that was a joke in case you are reading FBI Agent whats-your-name). kids posting on here saying they are over 18 when they are really too young to drive, and dirty men posting on here saying they are 18 when really they are approaching middle age. here in albuquerque some guy found a girl on myspace, and was then caught in her bed by her mom...he was 24, she was 14. contrary to what the vatican would have you think...forget the gays, technology is the end of civilization.

so to all those people out there wondering if i am young and availabe for afternoon sex while mom is downstairs...sorry to disappoint you, but i am really 26 years old. however, keep in touch, you may need my services some day soon.

pat robertson makes another appearance thanks to his remarks concerning sharon (a "friend" of his). seems he thinks the stroke may be god's way of saying "hey fatman...why are you giving my land away to those godless heathens? i'll show you to mess with my proclamations put down in a book thousands of years ago and erroneously copied millions of times over...not to mention exaggerated." but pat, as a christian wouldn't you say that the jews got it all wrong anyways and they are damned based on their failure to accept jesus christ as their personal savior? i think that would piss the big man off a little more...ignoring his son...but i guess maybe he really liked the gaza strip...maybe he was planning a vacation home there.

for the money the simple life honey is good...

3rd year-itis, dirty politicians and partisanship...

someone sent me a story about how 3rd year law students are insane slackers and don't do a damn thing, especially when compared to first and second year students. i found the story rather amusing to tell you the truth...for years i've been telling people that after the first month or two in law school you have learned everything you need to know to be an attorney...seems some folks agree. the percentages of students that actually did the work according to this article was ridiculously high though...a lot of those 50-90 percent lied...i'd say a handful of students are prepared daily...probably those few that actually buy the books.

i'll admit my third year was a joke...although my first two years weren't exactly studies in being a model student...come to think of it...i didn't do much after those first two months. although i did increase my tolerance for alcoholic beverages to ridiculous levels that third year...that should count for something. i mean, i learned a lot...like a 145 pound male can manage to consume approximately 15-20 drinks a night for months at a time...(with a few "lite" nights thrown in of course)...it will never change either, but schools need that money so 3 years it shall be...

the folks on capital hill are feeling the heat...big time lobbyists copping a plea and cooperating in investigations of bribery and corruption. the feds must have an insane amount of information from this guy...maybe that is why lawmakers got up in arms over the administration using wiretaps without seeking approval of the secret wiretap court...a bunch of them are going to be nailed by the stuff. good riddance you greedy fucks.

president bush is trying to rustle up support to renew the patriot act since it's lapse will inevitably mean the complete and utter destruction. he's gone to the old "partisan politics" tricks because "partisan politics have no place in matters of national security." i've changed my views on partisan politics...i'm all for it...i just wish there were more partisans to partake. maybe if some of the spineless "liberal" types in congress had utilized "partisan" politics instead of worrying too much about appearing weak for their upcoming presidential bids (which all fared oh so well anyhow) we could have avoided a lot of shit. although in a way maybe it is better this way...atleast the diminishing of american power is hastened this way...not that that is much comfort to the millions of people in this country watching their ability to make ends meet fade with each passing year as the big-shot bosses give themselves raises to run companies and pensions into the ground...or to the billions worldwide that are left behind by ignorant, selfish, greedy schmucks known as congressman and presidents and wto members and un administrators and the like...or the thousands of families missing a son, daughter, brother, sister, mother and/or father this holiday season after seeing them off in desert fatigues...

no one ever says a word about so much that happens in the world...

a float, lobbying for new mexico, and suv's...

i took some time off of paying attention to the rest of the world in order to nurse my own selfish depression...apparently that brought some people amusement...glad i could help you have something to read/discuss...and now to my usual gripings...

i missed the tournament of roses parade (god knows what number annual parade this one was...too many). apparently it rained...god forbid, flowers glued onto makeshift statues and such got wet...the horror. here is the part about it that i found appalling...new mexico, as in the state (for those of you that are unaware, new mexico is a state located between texas and arizona, just south of colorado, it forms the southeast corner of the four corners area - a complete waste of time if you are thinking of going and are over the age of 7 - yes, it is state...we are not a part of mexico) had a float in the parade. didn't win any awards...apparently the judges don't appreciate a mixed hispanic/indian/pueblo/anglo culture. i think the governor rode on the float (imagine that...bill richardson out of the state making a name for himself nationally instead of doing what he was elected to do here...who would've thunk it). seems the state shelled out $155,000 to make that float. true, this is not very much money in the grand scheme of a state budget...but something tells me 150 grand could go to better use in such a poor state with such miserable schools. just a thought...but then i'm not the governor...

speaking of spending state money and good ol' bill richardson...seems he hired a lobbyist for the state...seeing this on the front page of the paper this morning made me crinkle up my face, tilt my head and say "aaaarrrrrhhhh?"...what does it say about the state of our government when states are sending lobbyists on their own behalf to washington. that's right, states...as in the mini-sovereign bodies of the united states...as in the entities that send representatives by the hundreds to fill up the halls of congress...those states...sending lobbyists...to that congress...filled with their own representatives...to lobby for their benefit. does this make sense to anyone? how incredibly messed up is this country if the very entities that send representatives to a legislative body to, well, represent them, need to then spend tax money to pay people to go to that legislative body to, well, represent them? wha? every day i lose more hope...

maybe i will move back to my kingdom...when i was in high school i notified the white house i would be seceding from the union and forming my own kingdom...i am looking for some loyal subjects...unfortunately i moved since then...

new study out says that kids are no safer in suv's than in passenger cars...my guess is that is because there are a lot of people in big-ass suv's that can't drive for shit...i am always amused at the soccer mom/dad that spent 50 grand on a 4wheel drive giant, but when there is a dusting of snow on the ground they drive around like they are in a pinto...which leads me to a plea to new mexico/colorado drivers...figure out the left hand lane thing...it you aren't passing, aren't speeding, or are just a moron...don't use it...save us all some grief...

i'm still caught by surprise...

new year - same crappy town, new me...

the turning of the calendar...inevitably the time of year you realize just how much of an ass you have been in the past...

this year was quite a trip for me...beginning to finally get to know myself. i've been an ass in the past, but i am trying to better myself. it is a difficult transition, from closed-minded, selfish, childish pig clinging to a childhood idea to where i am trying to go...and it hasn't been pretty (as i am sure a few can attest to). some have caught the brunt of it much more than others...and i am amazed they have put up with it at all to tell you the truth...but thank you.

i realized a lot about myself the last few months...realized i've gotten the mountains out of my system, realized i have not been the friend she deserved, realized i am still looking for a place that feels like home, realized i don't fit in where i thought i did, realized i don't know shit about shit, along with quite a lot of other things that are too numerous to list here...hence my things i am not lists. so in the spirit of those, here is an attempt at resolutions...things i hope to be this year...

i hope to be a better friend, more available, more understanding, better at listening...

i hope to gain control of my recent bipolar tendencies...

i hope to regain the confidence lately lacking...

i hope to make those i appreciate realize just how much they mean to me, and how much i wish
for them to succeed and be happy (whatever that may be for them)...

i hope to get out of albuquerque, or atleast have definite plans to do so in the near future...

i hope to travel to at least 5 places i have never before seen...

i hope to regain my composure...

i hope to trim down my belongings a little more so that my entire life fits in the subaru (with the passenger seat open of course)...

i hope to play with my cats more...and give them each a bath...

i hope to end my recent selfish and childish bullshit...

i hope to cut my credit card debt in half...

i hope to be more attentive with my job and put everything into it when it requires...

i hope to write an article or two...and maybe even get them published...

i hope to read atleast two books a month that i have not read before...

i hope to take atleast a day before responding when my emotions are in a whirl...

i hope be more patient, with myself and with everyone else...

i hope to stop putting dents and holes in my car...

i hope to seriously look into studying/working abroad...

i hope to find one night a week to just be with me (and maybe bacchus and hermione)...

i hope to conserve in any way i can...

i hope to avoid living up to lawyer jokes...

i hope to keep my place clean and uncluttered...

i hope to get myself back in competition shape (but i'll settle for a year removed from competition shape)...

i hope to come out of all of this a better man...

i hope to just be...

but now that i look over that...i think i'll find and replace all the "hope to" bits to "will" before adding them to the more private list...

i'll make love to you woman, in five minutes time...ain't that a man?