:: Archipelapogo ::

:: 30.9.02 ::

Oddly Enough

Looks like TU is going to be the first university in the U.S. with a Mosque on the campus. Kudos!
:: Scott [+] ::
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"My life is...is...I'm surrounded by assholes!"

Denise and I went and saw the most excellent Igby Goes Down on Friday night. The film features Kieran Caulkin as the spoiled, apathetic, bored private school rich kid that you can't help but root for. He did an excellent job (although I don't know if I'd put it at 'Oscar-worthy', as I've seen at least one critic do). Susan Sarandon plays his terminally ill mother, and does a great job as well. Ryan Phillipe plays Igby's narcististic, money grubbing older brother, repeating the role that he had in Cruel Intentions. Claire Danes (growl!) plays the love interest, and does quite well. Good performances are also turned in by Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman.

The film is very "Catcher in the Rye"-ish, and I believe it was actually loosely based on the novel. The acting is superb all around, and first-time filmmaker Burr Steers seems to have a lot to live up to next time around. I'm gladly endorsing this movie and recommend it very highly. Very funny, very emotional, and very well done.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Feedback

Okay, I did hear back from Larry Brumley, Associate VP for External Relations at Baylor regarding the Bear Pit. Here is his reply, and below, my reply to him.

Scott, Thank you for your thoughtful e-mail. As we have said on a number of occasions (and SHARK has chosen to ignore), we know we can do better in respect to our bear mascots, even though we do meet all state and federal requirements for housing the bears on campus. Over the past two years some proposals have been considered for providing a more natural habitat for the bears. We are continuing to evaluate these alternatives. Stay tuned.
Larry D. Brumley Associate VP for External Relations Baylor University

Mr. Brumley,
Thank you for your quick response. It is much appreciated. I (and I'm sure many others) was not aware that alternatives had been on the table for many years. I hope that the recent publicity surrounding the issue will expedite the process and action can be taken soon, rather than later. I will keep an eye out for further developments, and as I stated previously, will be more than happy to participate in a fundraising program for this cause. I hope that Baylor can set an example for good treatment of mascots for universities throughout Texas and the entire nation.
Thank you again for your time,
Scott Secrest

I'm not sure what else may come of this, but at least he was nice enough to reply to me. But can't a distinguished alumnus get a "Mr."?
:: Scott [+] ::
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We on a mission!

Way cool. Backpack Nation wants to send 'ambassadors' from the States to underdeveloped countries:

Backpack Nation is a work in progress, taking shape day by day. The basic idea is to transform American foreign policy by deputizing and deploying individual travelers as "ambassadors" of the people of America. Each ambassador will be funded with $10,000 in personal expense money for an extended trip through some of the world's less-wealthy countries, and $10,000 more to give to whatever individual/family/organization/village that he or she deems appropriate.

Way cool. Somebody I know needs to apply for this. Maybe I should. All you need to do is submit a 1,000 word essay (about 4 pages typed, doublespaced) and they will judge by totally subjective reasoning who gets to go. (via rebeccablood).


:: Scott [+] ::
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Letters written much better than mine

And now, a letter (of arguably more importance) written to the members of Congress by the editors of the Nation. I don't really ask anyone who frequents this site to read everything I link to. I never would ask that of anyone. But I would ask you all to read this. Beautiful. '

(via MeFi).
:: Scott [+] ::
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Okay, I drafted and sent my letter to Dr. Sloan (the President of Baylor), the Chief of Staff, the Athletic Director, and the Vice President for External Relations. Here it is:

Dear Dr. Sloan, Mr. Loughridge, Mr. Stanton, and Mr. Brumley;

I have been keeping track of the recent controversy regarding the environment that the Baylor Bear mascots are kept in. I have read information both from the Lariat (on-line version) and SHARK's website. While I do believe that much of the information that SHARK presents is sensationalized, I do not believe that it discredits all of the points that they and their supporters raise.

As a student at Baylor University from August of 1997 until May of 2001, I would often stop by the Bear Pit to watch the mascot(s) pace around. The only times that I would actually say that I saw them happy were when they were being fed or played with by the trainers. I firmly believe that the trainers do a great job taking care of the bears. That is not the problem that I or many who agree with me have.

The only problem that I see regarding the bears is the environment in which they are living. The environment does not provide the bears with a healthy, natural place to live or be raised. The fact that the only time these bears see grass is when they are brought out into Floyd Casey is very disheartening. The sleeping quarters may be sufficient, but bears are just like all other animals on Earth in that they need room to play, explore, and have fun.

I see where the Bear Pit has earned a rating of a "Class 'C' Zoo" from an independent organization. The students at Baylor do not live in Class C dorms, or receive a Class C education. Baylor is a University that prides itself in the high quality of its campus and students that it has. Nothing at Baylor is done at a Class C level, from the new Student Life Center to the new Law School to the new Seminary. I hate to see the mascots that Baylor truly loves and enjoys treated as Class C citizens.

What I propose is an alternate site off-campus where the bears can have an adequate amount of room to roam and play that is still accessible by the students, parents, staff, and alumni of Baylor. There is not a significant amount of space available on campus that is large enough to house these bears properly. These bears are special, and deserve the best treatment that is available to them. If necessary, I would recommend an Alumni Fundraiser to build this new area. If this program were to be enacted, I would be glad to send my first check as an Alumnus back to Baylor University. You all have done a large amount of work to improve the quality of campus and student life in the last six years. All I ask is that you do the same for the mascots. Your replies are requested and appreciated.

Sincerely,
Scott Secrest
BBA Economics and International Business,
May '01.

What do you think? If I get any replies, I'll let you all know.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Old McBaylor had a Bear

I've been checking out the Lariat a lot lately, just to see what the major controversies on campus are this semester, and since it's published online now, it gives me an opportunity to laugh quite a bit. Looks like this semester it's all about the Bear Pit, where the mascot bear is kept. The pit is right in the middle of campus and consists of some sleeping areas, a water pond, and concrete. No grass or trees or anything of that nature. Usually the bears would just kind of pace back and forth, or sleep. The people that take care of them seemed to do a genuinely good job, though, to give credit where it's due.

Lately, though, the issue of the environment of where the bear is kept has come into the spotlight and seems to be dominating (along with war and terrah) the editorials of the Lariat. Much of this was set off by a visit from SHARK (Showing Animals Respect and Kindness) a group based out of Geneva, IL. Here's a Lariat article with some background info and here is SHARK's page about the Bear debate. The good folks from SHARK in Houston came with a van that had video screens and parked prominently on campus to show people where they were coming from and talk to students and other folks who may want to express an alternate opinion, to put it nicely. Their van got egged. Supposedly their van is rigged with video cameras, so hopefully they can find the people that egged them and get them in some trouble.

As I stated earlier, the bears really are cared for by their keepers (this whole oreo and Dr. Pepper thing is new to me). The problem is the environment that they are kept in. I'm planning on penning (ok, typing) a letter to Dr. Sloan and whoever else I can think of to express my opinion. I'll post a copy of it on here when I get finished, and any reply that I get (be it a form response or not). Hopefully it won't. Any ideas?
:: Scott [+] ::
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Gearhead Poseur

I'm not much of a car guy, but I really like the new Ford Thunderbirds. They're very nice cars, both in the traditional convertible and the Pop-top convertible. They're only offered in five colors though. And I must say, the "Inspiration Yellow" and "Thunderbird Blue" really stymie me. They're ass-ugly. I know it's the whole retro-fitting thing or whatever, but good lord, way to ruin a nice, $36,000 car. The black one would suit me fine, thank you very much. The only problem is, the ones that I see on the road tend to be either the blue or yellow. Much too Easter Egg-y for me. Oh well, it's not like I could afford one anyways.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Whew!

The Bears even beat the line. Golden Shower, indeed!
:: Scott [+] ::
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Shiver Me Timbers!

If I were a pirate, my name would be Mad Tom Rackham

Every pirate is a little bit crazy. You, though, are more than just a little bit. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

What be ye pirate name?

only b/c I haven't posted a quiz here in a very long time. Oh, and pirates rule!

:: Scott [+] ::
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I ain't no redneck!

Denise and I decided to take the train to the monologues, which kind of kicked off the night on a highlight. Here is an adaptation of the conversation between two people in the elevator at the train station.

Man: (wearing an indy car racing hat and polo, tight blue jeans, boots, and a dangly earring with an arrowhead on it) "...he said he could dj a couple of nights though"

Woman: (wearing tight blue jeans with pockets that were a different blue, almost bordering on purple, cowboy boots, and [I shit you not] a Bad Company tour t-shirt) "That'd be good, because you can't do it seven nights a week you know. I'd be willing to hire him if he'd stop making fun of me though"

Man: "He'd be a big help, you know."

Woman: "Yeah, but I ain't gonna put up with him if he keeps calling me a redneck. I ain't no redneck."

Me: (thinking) "I'd love to hear the justification behind that statement."

If you ever, under any circumstances other than quoting someone else, utter the phrase "I ain't no redneck", rest assured, because you most certainly are.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Talkin' About Vaginas, man

Denise and I went and saw the Vagina Monologues last night at the beautiful Majestic Theater. It was, of course, about 85% giddy women, 5% guys like myself that wanted to see it, and about 10% guys that were drug there by their wives/girlfriends/whatevers that looked very uncomfortable. We didn't have great seats (furthest back row, dead center, if you must know) but we could see and hear well enough. They were quite funny.

The monologues are based loosely on some interviews that the author had with women of every demographic. She took the answers to these interviews to write up several (maybe 10 or 12) monologues based on stories of women. The questions asked ranged from "What would your vagina wear if it was going to dress up" to "What would your vagina say if it could talk?". There were some very interesting answers.

The monologues ranged from extremely funny to very sad. Some of the women that were older had never spoken to anybody about that area "down there". Others were apparantly very candid about their vaginas. One even wanted to reclaim the word "cunt" in a bout of feminist glory. The three actresses that performed were excellent, being extremely comical or very somber when the time called for it. More of the monologues were on the humorous slant than the serious, which kind of surprised me, but that was probably good for some of the people in the crowd. The most serious one dealt with a woman who was raped by several soldiers during the war in Kosovo. She was raped by various people and objects, mutulating her vagina to where she could no longer even think about anything pleasurable happening there.

All in all it was a very good experience, and it gave us an excuse to ride the train at night (see next post). I would highly recommend it to most anyone who is not easily offended by sexual subject matter or foul language. Give it a shot if it comes near you, eh?
:: Scott [+] ::
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Fall or Autumn? Who cares? Bring it on!

The fresh weather that's been coming through Dallas has me all excited for the end of Summer and the beginning of Fall. No high's in the 90's for the next 8-10 days, at least. Yes. Yes. Yes. Plus, Fall marks a lot of cool, exciting things. The end of summer festival tours (warped tour, etc.) and the beginning of normal concert tours, which will be nice since Dallas has been pretty slow lately. Plus the end of cheesy summer movies, and the unveiling of the good stuff. Here are some movies that I'm looking forward to this Fall:

Frida starring Salma Hayek as Frida Kahlo, Alfred Molina as Diego Rivera and Geoffrey Rush as Leon Trotsky(!). It's a bio-pic about, oddly enough, Frida Kahlo, famed Mexican painter.

Bowling For Columbine - Michael Moore's documentary on the United States' fascination with guns. see more here and here.

Jackass: the Movie - not much I can say, but I've definitely got to put Jackass up as a guilty pleasure, and I can't wait to see the movie.

Bloody Sunday: "About the infamous day in 1972 when a socialist meeting attended by Irish agitators ended in bloodshed." Like the U2 song, ya dig?

Red Dragon - the (remade) prequel to Silence of the Lambs. I like Ed Norton quite a bit, and I liked both Silence and Hannibal, so I'm sure I'll see this.

Igby Goes Down: I don't know much about this except that it's got a great cast and has gotten some really good reviews. I'd like to check it out.

So, what are your plans for the fall? Anything exciting?
:: Scott [+] ::
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If there's a game, and nobody cares, is it still a big game?

Lest we all forget, the big 'pogo football rivalry is this Saturday with the Mighty Baylor Bears taking on the Difficult to Beat Tulsa Golden shower Hurricane. Woot! It's in Waco, and the Morning News reported Baylor as 11 point favorites. Yeah, call it the toilet bowl if you like, but I'll be interested in the final score. Please note: I can not name a single player on either squad.

Then, the following weekend, Baylor plays its Big XII opener against Kansas. Negatives for Baylor: They've lost some 29-ish Big XII football games in a row. Positives for Baylor: The last Big XII game they won was against KU. And it's in Waco. And KU's team sucks almost as much as Baylor's.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Delving into the Nation’s Dark Past (part 2) (part one here)

**Please note, this will probably contain graphic stories. If you’re squeamish, you may not want to read it**

I’m about two-thirds of the way through The Burning now, and I’m past the point of the riots (see: attempted genocidal massacre) and getting ready to dig into the afterglow, so to speak. The stories contained in the book that took place during the attacks were stomach turning and heart-breaking. They made me feel like spitting bile. I’m not sure what that means, but that’s exactly what I kept thinking to myself as I read them.

The whistle sounded at 5:08 AM, but nobody knows exactly which whistle it was or who set it off. However, people on both sides of the tracks knew that it signified the time of attack. The white men, joined by uniformed police officers and the National Guard began attacking the Greenwood area in full force. They were armed with pistols, shotguns, rifles, and a machine gun stolen/loaned from the National Guard’s Armory. Many civilian men were wearing badges given to them by the Deputy’s Department. They were told to “Get a gun, and get a nigger”.

Black men, women, and children were holed up in their homes, businesses, theaters, and churches with guns perched out the windows trying to stave off the oncoming mob. However they were outnumbered at least 10 to 1, and had many fewer guns and less ammunition. The white mob were seen banging on doors, ordering people out of their houses, shooting any black person that they found armed on site. The rest were corralled and taken to holding pens in parks and the Convention Center. After they were taken away, the homes were summarily looted and burned down to the ground, many times while they were watching, and all too often with people still left inside.

A black man was shot several times while running for an alley with a pistol in his hand. While on the ground still struggling for life and asking for his mother, a mob gathered around him, taunting him and kicking him. Eventually, several men pulled out pocketknives and began stabbing him, giving him a slow, painful death, much to the delight of the white crowd. An ambulance that pulled up to assist the man was turned away at gunpoint, rendering the medical assistance useless.

There are many other gruesome tales of horror in the book. One of the worst was the story of an elderly blind black man who used to sit on the corners of downtown selling pencils. He had no legs either, and would roll around on a plank of wood with wheels on it, using old catcher’s mitts on his hands to protect them as he moved around. He had the sympathy of many of the white folks who would often drop loose change into his tin cup. He was taken by four white men during the riots. His arm was tied to one end of a rope and the other end of the rope was affixed to the bumper of the white man’s car. He was quickly drug to his death on the gravel and cobblestone roads. Unfortunately, during these 24 hours, it was all to common to see the bodies of dead black men being drug around town behind cars like a hunting trophy.

These stories make me sick. They make me want to crawl out of my skin and renounce my humanity. I thank God that we as a society have evolved past the point in time where people can get away with a genocidal war in a city. And make no mistake, this was a very brief, yet intense war. There were bi-planes flying around buzzing the ground with guns sticking out of them picking off black men. The white veterans of World War I donned their uniforms for the battle, often shooting men that they had served with in Europe.

The most important point in learning about events like this is to do the victims a service by not forgetting them or the events that transpired. I was talking to my mom, and she said that at the time I had no relatives in Tulsa on either side of my family. That was a big relief to me, as I would loathe to think that somebody I was related to participated in this crap. Learning about these events has made me feel weird about my thoughts on Tulsa. I’ve always considered Tulsa more Mid-Western than Southern, more akin to Kansas City or St. Louis than Memphis or Montgomery. Yet events such as this were not exclusive to the South, also taking place in Duluth, Omaha, New York City, and Chicago, just to name a few. Let’s not forget that events like this still happened in our grandparents’ (or maybe parents’, depending) time.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Por que? Porque si!

Just to clarify the post below a bit, for those that don't know my future studying intentions, I plan on entering school in Fall of '04 in a joint masters program earning degrees in Public Affairs and Latin-American Studies. The Public Affairs is primarily for pragmatic purposes, so I can earn a living after I graduate, and I think the education will be interesting at the same time. I've decided to ditch economics just because I don't want to do that much math, especially all the convoluted statistical anlysis (econometrics, regression analysis, etc.). I didn't mind the courses that I took in higher math related econ, but I don't want to study it intensely or work in that field for life. I really enjoyed the social side of economics, but I think I'll get enough of that in Public Affairs.

But you may be wondering why Latin-American Studies? Mostly it's for fun. UT (where I hope to go) offers the joint degree program in three years, and an internship is required (for the Public Affairs degree). If I were just going to do an MPA, I could waive the internship due to my (by then) two years of work experience with the county, but they have great connections to do internships abroad, so I'd love to take advantage of that. If you do well in the first three-fourths of the first year in the program, then you have a better chance of getting a cool internship abroad.

What's more, I really dig Latin America. They've got a great culture (and each country has at least one other really cool subculture). I dig the food, the music, the attitude of the people (in general), I already speak the language fairly well, and have been practising with Denise (sorta), and I'm comfortable down there, at least in Mexico and Honduras, where I've spent some time. They've got some great authors, painters, and other artists. The history is really fascinating with the colonialists, the revolutionaries, the ancient cultures. And I'd love to live outside of the States for a couple of years at some point in time in my life, and it seems as good a place as any. I've met people from pretty much every Latin-American country at some point in time or another (mostly at Baylor) and have some connections down there now, which is cool. Free tour guides are great, no?

I'm pretty aware of the downsides of Latin America as well, the corruption, kidnappings, drug gangas, guerillas armies, etc. But everywhere has some negatives to it. I was pondering doing Russian and Eastern European studies instead, but figured that Latin-American was more pragmatic and likely. I still have plenty of time to change my mind several times, and I probably will, but right now, that's my plan. Now, to wait for time to pass by...
:: Scott [+] ::
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Never too early to start preparing

I'm such a sucker for book sales. Especially when the book sales take place at Half-Price Books. Half-Price Books is just like it sounds. You go in, you get half off of the cover price (most of the time, but never full price) and very often the books are overstocks or at least something that's never been read (you can tell). Now, when they say that they're going to take an additional 20% off of everything, I've got to go. So I went. I got five books for a grand total of $15.51. Not too shabby. Here's what I picked up:

Meeting at Telgte by Gunter Grass

Latin American Heroes: Liberators and Patriots from 1500 to the Present by Jerome Adams

Central America: A Nation Divided by Ralph Lee Woodward

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair

Sanctuary: the New Underground Railroad by Renny Golden

As you can see, I kind of went ape in the Latin-American studies section, but that's cool, as I'm trying to prepare for grad school, that I may or may not start in two years. Lordy, I'm a tool. Oh well, hopefully it'll make for some interesting reading.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Delving into the dark past of the nation's history (part 1)

After putting it down for about a week, I read about three more chapters of "The Burning" by Tim Madigan last night. The book is a comprehensive study of the history leading up to, the events that sparked, and the results of the Tulsa Race Riot in June of 1921, considered by most to be one of the worst and most violent race riots in the history of the U.S.

Here's a bit of background info for you. In this pre-depression era, Tulsa, a fairly recent boomtown thanks to oil discovered south of the Arkansas River, was host to probably the most affluent and independent black communities in the United States, named Greenwood. It was separated from the rest of Tulsa by some railroad tracks just north of downtown. The black and white communities coexisted fairly well at the time. Many of the blacks would work as maids, butlers, drivers, etc. for the nouveau riche of oil-rich Tulsa. However, many others were lawyers, doctors, surgeons, police officers, newspaper editors, etc. Occupations that were very rare for black people of that day to hold.

However, a young black man nicknamed "Diamond" Dick was accused of assaulting a white girl (with whom he was friends) in an elevator in the building where he worked as a shoe-shiner. He was arrested the following day, and an editorial written by the owner of the (now defunct) Tulsa Tribune sparked a violent mob outside of the County Courthouse where Diamond Dick was being held. The editorial contained many lies and embellishments about the incidents and contained the headline "Lynch A Negro". (Oddly enough, no original copies of this editorial are thought to exist. Any of the 600 papers that contained the editorial that have been found have the editorial removed.) This mob led to a major panic in the Greenwood era, and one of the most violent race riots ensued. (This is about as far as I've read so far, but I'll share more of the story with you as I peruse it.)

Anyways, what I wanted to write about now was about the history of the KKK and the film that reignited the membership. The Force law (KKK law) was signed by Ulysses S. Grant in 1870, forbidding two or more men from riding through towns in costumes together, and authorizing the use of Federal Troops against the KKK. This pretty much broke up the Klan for the time being. However, in 1915, D.W. Griffith released one of the most controversial, and held by many cinema historians as one of the most cinematically influential and groundbreaking, films of all time, Birth of a Nation. The film, based on a play called "The Clansman" by Thomas F. Dixon Jr. depicted Southern Whites as heroes of a time when "despicable, poor, and uneducated" Black men ran around the city raping, stealing, and joining each other to take over the governments of the south.

The film was seen by many. It caused a paradigm shift in the minds of people across the States, and set the equal rights movement back by untold years. The results of the film included a major re-emergence of the Klan, bringing it to numbers not seen in the first phase of action. It lead to Klan groups being started across the nation, not just the South, including New York City and Chicago. At the University of Chicago, some students held a dance in which up to 2,000 of them showed up in crudely made Klan costumes. Even President Warren G. Harding invited four members of a Klan group into the White House for a meeting, whereupon he took the secret Klan oath. This essay explains some of the plot elements that caused controversy and lays out some of the features of the film which earned it much respect.

The Race Riot in Tulsa was never brought up in any of my schooling (in Tulsa). I'd heard about it recently only b/c of the controversy surrounding a proposed memorial to it. One of the darkest spots in the Nation's history, yet few are aware of the fact that it happened, much less the scope of the actions, and the implications for the future. Few also are aware of the reverberating effect of a single film in the mental attitude of a country. Now, at least you are as well.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Work is overrated

And therefore, I bring you a little mini-flash disc golf game, courtesy of everythingdiscgolf.com. Unfortunately, to play, you have to give them your e-mail address, and then they'll e-mail you the link. But it's a nice little 9 hole game. I finished one over par the first time I played. I'll play again at lunch and let you know how much more I rocked. The putting is pretty easy, but it's a free game, and nice little diversion. Let me know how you do!
:: Scott [+] ::
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Just seems so necessary

Just b/c I'm listening to it right now, and it seems very appropriate. Here I give you Goodbye, Blue Sky by Pink Floyd

Did you, did you see the frightened ones?
Did you, did you hear the falling bombs?
Did you ever wonder why we had to run for shelter,
When the promise of a brave new world,
Unfurled beneath a clear blue sky?

Did you, did you see the frightened ones?
Did you, did you hear the falling bombs?
The flames are all long gone,
But the pain lingers on.
Goodbye, blue sky.
Goodbye, blue sky.
Goodbye.
Goodbye.

:: Scott [+] ::
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One year later

I've kind of been thinking all day about what, if anything, to put up here today. I'm still not completely sure, but here's how I want to handle it. I was pretty quiet on the blog the day of and days following the attacks, as I was doing some navel-gazing and trying to unwrap everything in my head. I finally came back with this post, in which I listed some hopes for the future, some positive lessons to be learned from the attack, something to take away from the deaths of a lot of people. Now, I just want to see how my wishes turned out.

1) Re-evaluation of mid-east policy: Well, this is going to be the stickiest one. Having bombed Afghanistan back into, well, 1999 in Afghani terms, I suppose, the smoking pistols are still drawn and searching for new targets. Bin Ladin is still out there, somewhere. I really don't see us ever catching him. Not so much b/c we can't, but b/c I think he's better for the gov't out there than he is captured. I think you all can tell what I mean when I say that. Now we're aiming at Saddam Hussein. I'm still not sure why. He apparently is much farther from nuclear weapons than previously thought. He's not dealing with Al-Queda as previously thought. He's not dumb enough to launch an attack against the U.S., or (more of a possibility) Israel. I don't think the heart of the administration is with the Iraqi people. Seems too much like a family vendetta and a business proposition to me. And frankly, I just really cringe at the thought of living in a country so willing to invade a country (and it would be an invasion) after being told to by a President who's willing to screw the checks and balances that make up the foundation of the government (not requesting permission from congress).

Yet, there did seem to be a small shift in the attitude of the U.S. Government regarding the Israel/Palestine conflict. Bush at least gave some lip service towards an established territory for the Palestines. This very much surprised me and gave me some hope. But the media machine is too busy working as the "let's start a war with Iraq" department to worry about the I/P stuff any longer.

2) Public outcry for a valid train system: This has not happened. It most likely never will. Now that I'm taking the light rail 5 days a week, I can further stake my claim that I would absolutely take a 4-5 hour trip between Dallas and say, Tulsa, Houston, San Antonio, etc. if it was reasonably priced and run well. I know I'm not alone. The reliance of people on gasoline is really annoying. The fact that people would rather drive a quarter of a mile down the street versus walking for 10 minutes really irritates me. You know how I feel about this, but let's be honest, the public view hasn't changed much at all in the past year. Mostly it's been "let's drill for more oil" and "now that we've conquered saved Afghanistan, let's give Halliburton some federal money to build a pipeline through the Black Sea, just like they've been trying to since Cheney was CEO. For shame.

3 and 4) I can't say really whether people's overall attitudes have changed. I think that I've learned a lot that I may not have otherwise learned. I've had a lot of conversations with people that would not have otherwise happened. And for that, I'm thankful. But overall for the public? It seems to me more likely that in the future, the 9/11 memorial days, or Patriot Day, or whatever it ends up being, will wind up being like Memorial Day weekend, or for many people church on Easter or Christmas. You go through the motions to make yourself feel good and feel like you've done your part. I know, I'm very skeptical. I always have been. But people prove me right time and time again. Is this to say that the people that have been doing their things today are insincere and it's all an act? Of course not. There are many people that are stilll grieving, or grieving again. And many will continue to do so. But like time tends to do, the emotions of many will be dulled, dis-intensified. I'm still not sure what I should be doing or feeling or thinking today. I'm not sure I ever will. I don't deal with tragedy well unless I experience first hand. I still very much remember the nausea that I felt the morning of Sept. 11 last year. And it was nausea. That was my immediate reaction. It kind of still is.

So as the flags have been taken off of the cars the past few months, as they tend to do, the memory of this day begins to blur a bit. I hear a lot of people screaming "Never Forget!". I don't think anyone that was cognizant of what happened on that day will ever forget. I don't think anyone can. My tribute may not be the most sentimental, heartfelt, touching, or inspiring. But it's how I feel, and it's my blog, so I make no apologies. Thanks for reading, God Bless, and I would still encourage you to donate blood to the Red Cross, as they are currently running low. And as always, comments are welcome.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Damn you, you non-meat eating, efficient car driving bastards! You're too funny!

Kaf uncovered a really bizarre comic strip in a MeFi thread the other day. He found it via BushCountry.org, but that site loads really slow, so I found the primary source. "The Leftersons" is basically Colin Hayes way to make fun of people on the left. It's not very subtle, as there's a clock with a hammer and sickle and the son's name is Stalin. I love the stereotypes, the lack of humor, the mundaneness of it all. Here's the archive. Laugh yourselves sick.
:: Scott [+] ::
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So....is your heart fonder?

Sorry for the absence. Had a busy weekend that concluded with the Indoor Soccer Game. It went well. Well, it started out well at any rate. We were only down 2-1 at the half. Then, for some reason, they pulled a goalie switch. Add that to the fact that we only had 2 subs and ran out of gas rather quickly, and the final tally was 10-2. Ouch. No goals for me (but there probably should have been) but I did get an assist. I'm not as sore as I thought I would be, but I'm definitely there. Next game Thursday night.

And yesterday Denise and I spent our three-year togetherness um, together (watch out kruggel, it happens really quickly). Craziness, eh? Anyways, we went out to eat and then saw "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" which for what it is (sappy, predictable, feel-goody, and everything ties up in a nice neat bow at the end) was pretty funny. Also, she gave me tickets to the Bob Marley festival a week from Saturday, so that'll be cool. I got her tickets to the Vagina Monologues next Thursday. Ain't we sweet?
:: Scott [+] ::
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Don't break your arm patting yourself on the back!

Just gotta say thanks to everyone that somehow made August by far my biggest month ever. Right around 800 hits in those 31 days. Cool by me!
:: Scott [+] ::
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And then, just to get it out of me

Can't explain (and please, don't take it too seriously, cos I'm really OK)

I Hate People: by Anti-Nowhere League

God I wish that I could hide away
And find a wall to bang my brains
I'm living in a fantasy, a nightmare dream…..reality
People ride about all day
In metal boxes made away
I wish that they would drop the bomb
And kill these cunts that don't belong

I hate people……..I hate the human race
I hate people………I hate your ugly face
I hate people………I hate your fucking mess
I hate people………and they hate me

My mother thinks that I am a jerk
Because I hate my bleeding work
Be like your daddy he's sincere
But don't be true ………..or you'll be queer
I'm working at my 9 to 5
with boring cunts that give me jibe
their talking of the love they give
they never give………they never give

I hate people……….I hate the human race
I hate people………I hate your ugly face
I hate people………I hate the mess
I hate people……..and they hate me


:: Scott [+] ::
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Not in a great mood, but screw it!

Work's been very stressful of late, but I refuse to comment about it here (especially since the fact that it's an election year has a LOT to do with it). But...

Let's be happy. I'm a huge fan of comic strips. It of course started with Calvin and Hobbes. Nothing compares with it yet. I'm not sure anything ever will. They're great. Funny as crap, political and social commentary, but not overbearing. Just reminds me of all of my youth and how I feel about stuff today. I could do an entire post about them, and maybe someday I will. But not now. Bill Watterson retired some time ago (and entirely too early). Another high school favorite was Fox Trot, which I still enjoy reading on a daily basis.

But the past is the past. Let's focus on now. The Dallas Morning News my two current favorite strips: Get Fuzzy and The Boondocks. Back at the beginning of the blog, I did a (lame) post about the Boondocks. Still great stuff. Great commentary, great politics, great all around. Supposedly there's going to be an animated show on Showtime sometime in the future, but until then (and even then, I'll have to get someone to tape it for me) the strip is still amazing.

I've read both of the Get Fuzzy books at Borders within the last six weeks or so, since I got into it late. If you're unfamiliar with it, please check it out. Once again, funny as all life, and just political enough to get me interested. Plus, although I don't currently own pets, I still love all the little nuances that come with them. The imaginary conversations, the personalities that they have. Everything. Yesterday's strip made me proud to call myself a fan of it.

Others that I currently dig include Rudy Park, Non-Sequitur, Bizarro (whose author is from Tulsa), Pickles, of course This Modern World, and some others that are printed in the Observer. Good stuff. Do you dig Comics? Which ones?
:: Scott [+] ::
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Woof. Brutally busy day at work, so you're not going to get much out of me right now. I do want to announce though that I'm joining an indoor soccer league with some people from Denise's work. First game Sunday night. I haven't played competitively in quite a while, so I'm a bit apprehensive. I'm sure it'll be fun though.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Cat and Mouse review

I neglected to mention that I finished "Cat and Mouse" by Gunter Grass sometime last week. This is part two of the Danzig Trilogy that he wrote. This book was much shorter than the Tin Drum, and didn't have near as much depth to it, at least that I found. It's basically a growing up story. One boy's obsession with a friend of his and the quirky things he did. I didn't like it near as much as The Tin Drum, but that's okay, it was still a good read, and finishing it puts me two thirds of the way through the trilogy.

I wrote about the trilogy after finishing the Tin Drum a few months ago. I read somewhere that in all three books, or in just two of them, that there are certain scenes that are all the same, but mean different things within the context of each story. Oskar Matzerath from the Tin Drum made a couple of appearances in this story, but there weren't any scenes that I remember specifically from the Tin Drum. Maybe Dog Years, the third book, which is about the same size as the Tin Drum, will have a little more of this.
:: Scott [+] ::
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President: 70, Citizens of the nation: 0

The Scorecard on Bush.

Bush has spent a whopping total of 250 days of his presidency at Camp David (123 days), Kennebunkport (12) and his Texas ranch (115). That means Bush has spent 42 percent of his term so far at one of his three leisure destinations.

To date, the president has devoted far more time to golf (15 rounds) than to solo news conferences (six). The numbers also show that Bush, after holding three news conferences in his first four months, has had only three more in the last 15 months -- not counting the 37 Q&A sessions he has had with foreign leaders during his term.

Bush has raised $114.8 million this year at 48 GOP events, surpassing Clinton's record of $105 million in 2000 from 203 events. The Bush White House has challenged his tally only once, and Knoller countered with voluminous evidence.

Wow. And I was happy that I got two weeks paid vacation per year.

(shamelessly ripped from O-Willlis)
:: Scott [+] ::
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Livin' on Tulsa Time

Sorry for the unannounced absence this weekend, but I went home for Labor Day. Quite enjoyed myself. Notes:

**Walgreens is taking over the whole damn city. There are now no less than 4 of them within a 3 mile radius of my house. It's ridiculous.

**Disc golf is quite fun (but you knew that already, didn't you?

**Kruggel's girlfriend is way cool. Why she puts up with him, I have no idea.

**The more crowded and patrolled a highway is, it has absolutely no bearing on the jackasses that go 95 in their Montero Sports and scare the crap out of little cars like mine.
:: Scott [+] ::
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