Wanderings

Take Back Your Congress

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:11:54 PDT

by Bruce Schmoetzer.

This is going to be quick (I have to run off to teach my Aikido class) -

Go read this:
Accountability Now and Strange Bedfellows: The strategy and rationale

Then go to Strangebedfellows and pledge to donate to the AccountabilityNow PAC on Aug 8, 2009. Even if it is only $5, it will have an impact.

The Constitution starts with "We the People" - not "We the Money Grubbers"

Neither Party is actually doing their job. Neither is behaving as the Loyal Opposition and restricting the actions of the Federal or State governments. Both are taking someone else's $$$ and then dumping us on the trash heap. Ron Paul and Obama showed that a lot of money can be raised by a lot of small donors. It is now time to make that money have real influence.

Rules Aren't Always Such a Bad Thing

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 21:52:44 PDT

by Bruce Schmoetzer.

A few years ago, I joined an over-30 (years old) baseball league. Not softball - baseball. We played The Game with reckless abandon, got hurt and loved it! Unfortunately, The Administrators of The League seemed to believe that they owned The League and could do as they saw fit. In the the minds of many (but not all) of The Players, this was intolerable. We attempted to reason with The Administrators, but to no avail. So, we left to start a New League.

We had given money to The League while we were there. Some of that money went to baseballs and catcher's equipment and helmets and bases and fields and other stuff that The League needed to operate. We spent even more money on gloves and shoes and knee-pads and braces for ourselves. So we were entitled to take those things with us! We had put in the time and effort and the money!

We took our spikes, our gloves, our baseballs, our hats and bats. What we did not and could not take were those things that belonged to The League. Because The League held them in trust for The Players that remained. You see, The League is there for The Players, even if the The Administrators don't always see that. But even under the direst of circumstances - leaving - we had no right to the bats or balls or bases or helmets or the Name of The League that we and others had paid to maintain. Had we done so, The Administrators would have had a duty to protect The League. They would have been honor- and duty-bound to protect The League for both the current as well as the future Players.

You see, we knew The Rules going in and we chose to abide by them going out. You want to "take my ball and go home!" - please do. Just leave my ball (or church) where you found it. It doesn't belong to you and it certainly doesn't belong to me. It belongs to The Players who have not yet stepped on to The Field.

"Waterboarding" = Drowning

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 11:03:45 PDT

by Bruce Schmoetzer.

Vanity Fair magazine asked Christopher Hitchens it he would be willing undergo waterboarding - he agreed. He has written about his experiences and you can watch the video as well. Make up your own mind. I know I have.

The iPhone in 74 countries? Not anytime soon.

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:27:30 PDT

by Bruce Schmoetzer.

OK, I watched the WWDC keynote with all the nifty iPhone apps and new 3G and GPS hardware. And, YES, I want one. Unfortunately, I (and some of my friends) do not live in any of the 70 countries in which the new (or even the current) iPhones will be available.

I live in Montana. They live in Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota. And AT&T is no where in sight. Sure they have roaming agreements with Cellular One. But that does us no good.

So - with the new rules about having to activate your iPhone in-store only - unless the iPod touch gets fitted with a GPS chipset, we are screwed. If anybody out there has Steve Jobs' phone number, please give him a ring on our behalf. We would be happy to join the League of Nations.

-THX!

RIP: Hanna Montana (Mountain Lion)

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:44:35 PDT

by Bruce Schmoetzer.

Previously, I told you about having to fix the aftermath of the exuberance of a baby mountain lion. Well I found out today that Hanna (as she was named by the children in and around Red Lodge) had to be put down. She had a genetically passed disease that caused her bones to be extremely brittle and break easily. To the point that even when the surgeon tried to fix her initial fractures of the leg and pelvis - by gently sliding her leg to the side, it too broke.