Dec 2007
Santa Scam Revealed
18-Dec-07 10:37 AM Filed in: Entertainment|Humor
Caught in the act of deceiving the world with his dubious "Santa scam", quick change artist and notorious Chinese food thief, Larry Slushpile, has been arrested for multiple counts of grand theft gluttony and for impersonating a mythical icon. Posing as a humble Santa seeking a quick weight gain for the holidays, Slushpile has traveled the world seeking free food from countless Chinese kitchens in an effort to play upon their good will and generous hearts. Unwitting restaurant owners have graciously given Slushpile mounds of free food in an effort, they thought, would help "Santa" gain weight quickly. A generous and selfless act completely spurned by Slushpile's greed seeing how the Chinese generally do not celebrate Christmas anyway. It is still not clear just exactly how Slushpile is able to morph himself into Santa so quickly and so convincingly, but perhaps several months in a maximum security prison will help reveal his villainous secrets.
Time Magazine's Top Gadget of 2007
#1. Apple iPhone
The iPhone changed the way we think about how mobile media devices should look, feel and perform. The design is exceptional inside and out: It's got a slick glass-and-stainless steel case and an elegant touch screen loaded with eye candy. It's an iPod and a 2-megapixel camera. Images and video clips display vertically or horizontally — they reorient themselves depending on how you hold the thing. When the phone detects a wireless network within range — your own home wi-fi set up or somebody else's — it lets you tap once to connect, and then proceed with your Web surfing, Google mapping, emailing and other activities that can otherwise be painfully slow over AT&T's cellular network — the only one, unfortunately, that carries iPhone calls.
See the entire list of top 50 gadgets for 2007 here.
I Am Superman...yeah, right
I recently took a quiz to see which super hero I am the most akin to; you can see the results below. While I am "flattered" that it has equated me with the golden boy "Superman", you have to stop and consider why a robotic construct (me) crafted on the whim of a megalomanic scientific inventor with visions of world domination, could ever remotely be compared with or likened to Superman? One thing is for certain: either this super hero quiz is highly inaccurate, or the good Dr. Torso really, really screwed up the personality chip that he installed into my chromium shielded lobular cavity.
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Your results:
You are Superman
Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...
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Your results:
You are Superman
| You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.  |
Click here to take the "Which Superhero are you?" quiz...
Movie Wisdom
09-Dec-07 10:36 AM Filed in: Entertainment|General Interest
The mark of a truly great movie can be measured in a number of different ways, but one that is of particular interest is in the clever manipulation of dialogue. Words spoken by the characters that have a profound meaning beyond the simple context of the movie that can reveal wit, logic, wisdom and truth applicable across a broad spectrum. There are many numerous examples of such dialogue all through out movie history, but one that is particularly well written and executed is performed by Matt Damon in this scene from 1997's "Good Will Hunting". With a bit of sarcasm, Will has figured out why he should be wary of accepting a government job that would allow him to utilize his keen intellect.
My Answer To A Question Of Ethics
03-Dec-07 11:33 PM Filed in: General Interest|Personal
The previous post, "A Question Of Ethics", was born out of a conversation that I had with a friend about four years ago. Believe it or not, at the time I was a registered Republican voter and was well heeled in the conservative mind set of political and social ideology. It was the result of the outcome of this conversation that caused me to stop and ponder my whole perspective and general outlook on life. It was the result of asking myself this same very question, and looking deep inside for an honest answer, that began the process of my rethinking my entire political, ethical and social outlook on life. This conversation began the process - it wasn't the only impetus that eventually caused me to re-chart my attitude regarding welfare. As I slowly realized what the answer to this question was for me, I realized that in my zeal to protect against the cheats and liars who abuse the welfare system that the restrictions and limitations I supported also hurt those who truly needed assistance.
For me, I ultimately had to realize that as much as I despised waste and selfishness by some, that that was not the most important issue. The most important issue is to have a system that offers true help and hope to the needy and destitute; that should be the first and foremost priority. There will always be those in the world who will take what doesn't rightfully belong to them, but that does not mean we should stop caring for those who need it because some will abuse it. We may be able to weed out some of the most obvious and egregious abusers, but you will never be able to eliminate all waste unless you completely cut off all aid and in so doing hurt those who need it. It is not the lesser of two evils, but it is the greatest good that we can do as humans to willingly help those amongst us according to their needs; to give willingly a helping hand even though we know that there will be those who will abuse it.
The answer is different for different people. I do not pretend to suggest that my answer is the only correct answer. I am not trying to take the moral high ground and suggest that those who differ from my answer are any less compassionate or caring than I. Nor do I propose that we remove all restrictions on welfare assistance. But I want to err on the side of generosity and not on the side of restrictions. I want to be sure that those who need help get it, even at the cost of those who don't need it get it as well. For me, it was an epiphany born out of a conversation with a friend that simply started as a debate on welfare. The issue is meeting the need and not prohibiting the greed.
For me, I ultimately had to realize that as much as I despised waste and selfishness by some, that that was not the most important issue. The most important issue is to have a system that offers true help and hope to the needy and destitute; that should be the first and foremost priority. There will always be those in the world who will take what doesn't rightfully belong to them, but that does not mean we should stop caring for those who need it because some will abuse it. We may be able to weed out some of the most obvious and egregious abusers, but you will never be able to eliminate all waste unless you completely cut off all aid and in so doing hurt those who need it. It is not the lesser of two evils, but it is the greatest good that we can do as humans to willingly help those amongst us according to their needs; to give willingly a helping hand even though we know that there will be those who will abuse it.
The answer is different for different people. I do not pretend to suggest that my answer is the only correct answer. I am not trying to take the moral high ground and suggest that those who differ from my answer are any less compassionate or caring than I. Nor do I propose that we remove all restrictions on welfare assistance. But I want to err on the side of generosity and not on the side of restrictions. I want to be sure that those who need help get it, even at the cost of those who don't need it get it as well. For me, it was an epiphany born out of a conversation with a friend that simply started as a debate on welfare. The issue is meeting the need and not prohibiting the greed.