X is…

…Well, it’s money spent.

As I read the news of Bush’s Economic Growth Package, I realize that he’s trying to do the same thing to people that got the country in this situation in the first place. I could be wrong. I’m certainly not that interested in economics as a field, but I think I’m right on this.

Here’s some money, kid, go spend it all in one place.

His economic plan back in 2001 was to give tax cuts and hope that people would run out and spend it immediately. Something about money that the government doesn’t use should go back to the people. Except, that money could have gone to pay down the deficit and make life a lot better for the future of our country.

After 9/11, Bush encouraged people to get back out and spend their money. That’s the only way to make things better.

People did. They spent it on all sorts of items that they really cannot afford. They helped to inflate the housing market by purchasing houses they really cannot afford at rates that don’t really exist. They piled on new cars and credit card bills from which they cannot recover. All the while, the government has been spending money that it will never have at higher rates than any president before.

I would like to go back many years to a leader before the country ever existed. You may have heard of the guy and his key on a kite. A caricature of a man named Benjamin Franklin. He said something that all of us have heard. My teacher taught it to our class back in third grade. I wonder if they still teach it?

A penny saved is a penny earned.

I read somewhere that he may not have really said that. It doesn’t really matter. The fact is that it is sound advice and very opposite of everything that government encourages now. The idea of spending money no matter how disastrous to our personal finances in order to benefit and help the corporations of America seems so counter-productive.

I do believe that’s what the master plan is. When the economy slows down, throw some money at the pinheads so that they can spend it in corporate America. There is no guarantee that spending money will create a richer America, but it will create a few richer Americans. I’m not that interested in their well-being nor are they interested in mine.

So my thoughts are simple. If there is a bonus from the government headed my way, I’m not purchasing anything new.

Benjamin Franklin has also been attributed with this quote too.

Anyone who trades liberty for security deserves neither liberty nor security.

Also counter to the current administration.

Popularity: 49% [?]

I was watching Lewis Black’s Red White and Screwed the other day.  I know, I’m way behind on this, but here’s the thing, I don’t really like television.  I’ll be damned if I’m going to spend any extra money every month so that I can have HBO.

Anyway, he was discussing how George W. Bush doesn’t believe in evolution.  His line was something to the effect that he didn’t think that during his lifetime a president would be elected that did not believe in evolution.  He then went on to compare the Old Testament to the New Testament and how Bush believes in the Old Testament story of how the world was created in seven days.

Here’s thing, I’m not sure a person can run for president and be taken seriously if that person does believe in evolution.  Especially if the person does not believe in creationism.

Reagan declared that evolution is a theory.  Bush is the son of his dad and people get their opinions from somewhere.  Look at the hopefuls right now.  I can’t believe that Huckabee and Romney would believe in evolution.  Ron Paul?

We are always in a situation where we elect people to take our important offices who deny truth.  In fact, we encourage it.  We force each candidate to prove their loyalty to their faith.  Seems disastrous.

Some more Lewis Black.

I think evolution is important because it’s a small corner of a large tapestry that I like to call—REALITY. And the thing is—I’m right. I don’t have to argue this point any more. Fossils. Fossils. Fossils. I win.

Here’s one from where he was discussing how people believe the world was created in the last several thousand years and that humans lived with dinosaurs.

They are crazy, they are stone cold fucking nuts, I can’t be kind about this because these people are watching the Flintstones as if it were a documentary.

One last one, and it may be true.

In my lifetime, we’ve gone from Eisenhower to George W. Bush. We’ve gone from John F. Kennedy to Al Gore. If this is evolution, I believe that in 12 years, we’ll be voting for plants.

Popularity: 46% [?]

Apparently this is news.

Churches Must Address Packers

Are you kidding me?

I’ve written about the whole deity supporting one team over another before- maybe too much, but it’s really annoying to me.

It ends like this.

“The spirit of God gives us power not just to be ordinary people, but extraordinary people,” the priest said. “You give it your all. Don’t just try to survive. You thrive.”

The Rev. John Becker of Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church just a few blocks south of Lambeau Field said he has seen the Packers Prayer, too, but never read it.

Certainly, he said, some of his parishioners will be praying for a win Sunday. Children in the church’s school offered a special petition last week during a Mass, praying for a Packers victory.

Privately, the priest admitted, he would, too.

“I am very strong supporter of the Packers. I will say, ‘God’s will be done,’ but please may it be that the Packers win,” he said, laughing.

We’ll see how that goes for them.

Popularity: 45% [?]

Here’s a representation of searches that have been used to find my site or at least this article.

Search
serj tankian + political views   atheist Serj Tankian serj tankian view on politics and religi

I’ve also seen searches looking for serj and communist or serj and philosophy.

Why? Why are people so worried about what Serj Tankian thinks? Are they going to take back their copy of his album they purchased last year? Are they going to refuse to ever listen to any of his albums ever again if he’s something that they don’t agree with?

Or, if Serj believes in something, are they going to suddenly begin thinking whatever he does because it seems cool?

I’m amazed at the idea that people seek philosophical, religious, and political guidance from pop icons. I highlighted Serj because I think he has some things to say that are worth considering, but I do not need to know what his actual beliefs are in order to move on. I still think for myself and determine my own beliefs.

Maybe if they see from some source that Serj is something they don’t like, then people will move from liking his music to not liking his music in one fail search. As if, “Well, his songs are catchy and I think he’s saying something cool, but if he’s not a good American or Christian, then I don’t want to listen to him anymore!”

Bottom line. Serj Tankian’s album is only so-so. I reviewed it and gave it an alright score, but it’s nothing groundbreaking and nothing that I could listen to all that much. In fact, the radio plays Empty Walls too much. The lyrics do a good job of getting an idea out, but apparently people are confused as to what the idea is, or want it specifically explained to them in black and white terms.

So tell me. What are these search terms for? What is the goal of seeking out Serj and his philosophy? Will your opinion of him change if you learn something? Will you learn more about him than you will just hearing/reading his lyrics? Is his opinion of the world that necessary?

Popularity: 40% [?]

My oldest daughter wants to donate all the money in her piggy bank to a leukemia fund raiser going on at school.  She’s 11 and that’s a noble cause, but I’m skeptical to say the least.  I told her to find out who the charity is and we’ll do some research, and also to really think about this.

My pessimism runs from stories I’ve heard over the years of greedy charities or high CEO salaries or any of the other various scams over the years.  I also have little trust with the school system as they are constantly trying to raise funds for their schools by selling just about anything they can get their hands on.

To supplement their funds through the very children they are trying to teach seems quite strange to me.  They may intend for me to do the donating, but they pull the heart-strings of the children and tell them of all the terrible things that happen to whomever they are trying to raise money to help.

Here’s my other part (I got lost in a bit of a tangent).

I gave blood for several years.  That’s my donation.  It doesn’t supplement anyone’s income and is very beneficial to many people.  I did it every 58 days, or whenever they sent me the next reminder.  I believe it is important to help where I can and monetarily is not where I’ve been able to readily help over the years.

I had been giving for a few years when I started working for a person who also loved to give blood.  Unfortunately, he took it personally.  He got the blood bank to come to our workplace every other month and he went recruiting for donors very passionately.  I thought that was admirable… at first.

The problem was that he didn’t take no lightly.  He realized that he couldn’t “force” anybody to give, but he also used the power of guilt (he is Christian, so he’s had many examples of effective guilt) if people said no.  On top of that, I don’t think he ever realized what kind of negative impact being a boss of people and asking them to do something they may not want to with guilt associated has.  The people who worked for him felt as if they “had” to give or the consequences at work would be negative.

He would have denied a correlation to work, but it was there.  He would ridicule people for getting tattoos, he would mock those who were feeling ill, or any other tactic he could think of if people were unwilling to give.  He would also discuss, not openly, that people who gave were somehow better employees.

The company stopped his blood drives because a person passed out after giving.  The company did not want to be held liable for anything that could happen to people who gave blood as it is not for everybody, so my boss decided he would no longer give to the charity the company sponsored.  So they were good enough to give to before, but only if he could run his blood drives.

This general attitude frustrated me, and as is my nature, I stopped giving for him.  I would go down to the local place where they were taking donations and give on my own.

My point?  It’s the people who are “driving” that make or break a charity.  I need to get back to a point where I feel like donating.  I no longer work for the company, but I do need that negative vibe to go away.

As for my daughter, I’m hoping that she doesn’t get the same bad feelings or a feeling as if her charitable contribution didn’t mean anything.  She wants to do some good, and I appreciate that.

Popularity: 49% [?]