Corey Tamas

Me:
Sometimes I think I shoudl have gone into standup comedy.

Vedder:
nah I don’t hink you’d like tellingthe same jokes over and over and over

Me:
You’re so right. But sometimes I’m overcome with the urge to make a living out of telling jokes all day.

Vedder:
then be a funny blogger / dave barry type. and tell different jokes every day

Me:
The problem is I only have about half a day’s worth of jokes.

Vedder:
type slow

Me:
That’d work!

This is from a spam email I received today.

I have to admit, I clicked the link. They had me at “Hzds Qlaz”.

I’m not usually one to make a lot of comment on the American Constitution, as I’m not American and I’m generally uninterested in discussions about partisan politics or related matters. The issue of gun control isn’t what I’d call a “hot button” for me, personally, but I’ve had some discussions lately which have inspired me to come up with a few thoughts on the matter. I am a great believer in the greatness of the USA and the people who live there, and so I have a few thoughts and even a bit of passion about what might help them to realize their potential.

- A gun is not a tool. It’s a weapon. Whether it’s right or wrong for an individual citizen to own one, don’t kid yourself. It’s not used to plane a door. It’s not used to spread compost. It’s not used to hammer nails. It’s a weapon, and weapons are meant to kill. This puts guns into a category separate from, say, cars… which only kill when they’re being used improperly. With a gun, the more expertise you have in using it, the more lethal it becomes.

- The right to a gun is not the same as a right to free speech just as, say, the right to eat what you want is not like the right to work where you like. Both are rights, but each has different implications, restrictions and (here’s the key part) responsibilities which go with it. Making a one-for-one comparison between the first amendment and the second shows a marked lack of understanding of both.

- To deny or ignore that both language and society have shifted from the days in which the constitution was created is to bypass the principles enshrined therein and fall into the area of fundamentalism. This is not a perfect document; it’s man-made and must be applied in a sane, flexible way. One example of language, for instance, which has changed is where all youngsters used to be called girls. One societal change is that there is now affordable automatic weaponry. Both language and basic societal evolution change the nature of the document’s literal application, and that must be appreciated in order to honor its principles.

- Every right comes with a commensurate responsibility. If one wishes to cite the constitution’s reference to militia, then national guard service and training should be compulsory in our society. Not unlike Switzerland. Those who balk at proper militia training while holding fast to their right to possess a firearm strike me as unfit for either.

This is me testing to see if I can post from Flock; the Mozilla/Firefox-based browser.

If this works, I may just update more often.

Srsly.

(Written by Ruth, Dec 2006)

Love me as I love you.

Hold me as I hold you.

Care for me as I care for you.

Share with me as I share with you.

Follow me as I fallow you.

Teach me as I teach you.

Believe me as I believe you.

Hope for me as I hope for you.

Want me as I want you.

Feel me as I feel you.

Play with me as I play with you.

Show me as I show you.

Guide me as I guide you.

Give to me as I give to you.

Watch me as I watch you.

Save me as I save you.

Plant me as I plant you.

Steady me as I steady you.

Keep me as I keep you.

Cover me as I cover you.

Feed me as I feed you.

Shelter me as I shelter you.

Love me as I love you.

“There is one peculiarly pernicious application of the doctrine that human nature cannot be changed. This is the dogmatic assertion that there will always be wars, because we are so constituted that we feel a need of them. What is true is that a man who has had the kind of diet and education that most men have will wish to fight when provoked. But he will not actually fight unless he has a chance of victory. It is very annoying to be stopped by a speed cop, but we do not fight him because we know that he has the overwhelming forces of the State at his back. People who have no occasion for war do not make any impression of being psychologically thwarted. Sweden has had no war since 1814, but the Swedes were, a few years ago, one of the happiest and most contented nations in the world. I doubt whether they are so still, but that is because, though neutral, they are unable to escape many of the evils of war. If political organization were such as to make war obviously unprofitable, there is nothing in human nature that would compel its occurrence, or make average people unhappy because of its not occurring. Exactly the same arguments that are now used about the impossibility of preventing war were formerly used in defense of duelling, yet few of us feel thwarted because we are not allowed to fight duels.”

- from An Outline of Intellectual Rubbish, 1943

I was reading this article, linked by a friend, about the upcoming G.I. Joe movie. Early in the article, which is concerned with explaining why the movie is going to be terrible, the author cites Michael Bay’s involvement (as director) as being a liability. Bay, who did the Transformers movie from last year (was it last year?), proved himself unsuitable because he “had no respect for the lore and legacy of the Transformers property.”

I can’t be the only one who thinks the idea of Transformers as having “lore” and “legacy” is funny, can I?

I’m waiting for the follow-up post where someone complains about how we, as a collective society, have forgotten the My Little Pony canon…

1. Forty Six and 2 - Tool

2. Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding

3. And So Is Love - Kate Bush

4. Hey Ladies - Beastie Boys

5. Rid Of Me - PJ Harvey

6. Little Plastic Castles - Ani Difranco

7. Tired of Being Alone - Al Green

8. Stone Cold - Anthony Hamilton

9. Freddie’s Dead - Fishbone

10. I’m Down - The Beatles

11. Shut ‘Em Down - Public Enemy

12. Highway To Hell - AC/DC

13. Burning Down The House - Talking Heads

14. HWC - Liz Phair

15. Name of the Game - Crystal Method

16. Passenger - The Deftones

17. If You Can’t Say No - Lenny Kravitz

18. Confusion - New Order

19. Rosetta Stoned - Tool

20. Money City Maniacs - Sloan

21. Like a Stone - Audioslave

22. What Comes Around - Justin Timberlake

23. I Wish - Stevie Wonder

24. Ask - The Smiths

25. Mama Said Knock You Out - LL Cool J

26. All I Wanna Do Is Play Cards - Corb Lund

27. Main Offender - The Hives

28. Some Like It Hot - The Power Station

29. That’s All - Genesis

30. Technologic - Daft Punk

Icy stairs. I went down them.

The first time was when I was walking down the stairs in front of my home and I slipped and my ass went like a sled down to the bottom. The second time was last night when I was walking up them and slipped. The second time was worse. My back is sore, my head is bumpin’ and there’s something wrong with my right arm.

What a stupid klutz I am.

Teacher Tells 7-Year-Olds Santa Is Not Real

One minute: “Don’t teach that Creationism crap in our schools cause we don’t want you filling our kids’ heads with made-up nonsense!”

The next minute: “You got a lot of nerve telling my kid there’s no Santa, lady!”