"...every level of government should statutorily and procedurally prefer married couples over cohabitators, homosexuals or fornicators. The cost of sin should fall on the sinner, not the taxpayer.”
Bob McDonnell (hopefully not the next VA governor)
"The Republican Party’s Vision for the Family: The Compelling Issue of the Decade"
Monday, August 31, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/29/09
"Everything has changed, absolutely nothing's changed"
-Pearl Jam
"Corduroy"
-Pearl Jam
"Corduroy"
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/28/09
"Lisa, if you don't like your job, you dont strike: you just go in every day and do it really half-assed. That's the American way."
Homer Simpson
'The Simpsons'"
Homer Simpson
'The Simpsons'"
Friday, August 28, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/27/09
"I'm always thinking one step ahead, like a... carpenter... that makes stairs..."
Andy Bernard
"The Office"
Andy Bernard
"The Office"
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/26/09
"Birthdays was the worst days, Now we sip champagne when we thirst-ay"
-Notorious B.I.G.
"Juicy"
-Notorious B.I.G.
"Juicy"
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/25/09
"You can't solve drug related problems with more drugs"
-Me (as far as i know)
-Me (as far as i know)
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Societal Issue: The Hipster
In many lucky parts of the world, the Hipster doesn’t exist. But for anyone who lives in a Hipster populated area, this post is for you.
What is a Hipster?
For those that are not familiar with what Hipsters are, let me give you a brief overview. Hipsters can easily be spotted by their distinguished attire. They are often seen riding bikes, wearing very tight pants, and sporting an anti-establishment haircut. When you see Hipsters out at bars, they are often drinking PBRs and talking about Indie Rock (see: Yo La Tengo). Hipsters are also fans of irony and are known to wear clothes that reflect this interest.
Infiltrating the Hipster
Sun Tzu once said, “Know thy enemy.” With this idea in mind, I’ve devised a plan to infiltrate the Hipsters. The plan is to go out to a bar dressed as, and acting like, a Hipster. This is no easy task. I will dress in a tight fitting (read: female) shirt. Most likely one that depicts rain clouds with sad faces on them. I will also be wearing a pair of tight jeans – probably black – with a pair of Converse All-stars on my feet. My hair will be Faux-Hawked, and I will don a pair of black rimmed square glasses. Depending on the weather, I will also attempt to wear a tan corduroy jacket. While out at bars, I will only drink PBRs, and attempt to discuss Indie bands with any other Hipsters close by. I will also tell stories about almost getting hit by cars while riding my bike, which all Hipsters can relate to.
Being a Poser...
The biggest challenge I face by posing as a Hipster, is that many Hipsters are in fact, Posers. Yes, a large contingent of Hipsters are actually “normal” people posing as Hipsters. Why anyone would want to live prolonged periods as a Hipster is beyond me… but who am I to judge. But because these Posers exist, real Hipsters are keen on spotting Hipster-impostors. This being said, I’ll have to be extra careful when communicating with Hipsters and I must be very well versed on all the new Indie Rock bands. If I’m exposed, I’ll try to slink away before the Hipsters shout their Hipster-impostor call – altering all Hipsters that an impostor is among them.
Repercussions
Besides being spotted as a Poser by real Hipsters, I’ll also have to avoid the Meathead/anti-Hipster crowd. Meatheads naturally hate Hipsters and will often attempt to destroy them physically when seen. Most Meathead – Hipster interactions occur while passing each other on the street, knowing this, I’ll try to reduce my foot travel as much as possible. If I’m unfortunate enough to be spotted by a Meathead while out at a bar, I’ll have to rely on my quick wit to escape bodily harm. Luckily Meatheads are, by nature, stupid, so tricking them with circular logic shouldn’t be a problem.
Conclusion
Ultimately though, by infiltrating the Hipster populous, I will better understand how they tick, and how to manage my Hipster interactions. I’ll be sure to write a blog post after I have completed my Hipster infiltration – assuming I’m able to survive the night.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/21/09
"Damn, the lights are blinking, I'm thinking, it's all over when I go out drinking"
-Cypress Hill
"Insane in the Brain"
-Cypress Hill
"Insane in the Brain"
Friday, August 21, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Global Issue: The Economy * written by the Realist
The following is a post written by a friend, who concerns themselves with financial matters. As this post was not written by me, I will take no credit/blame/accolades from it. I merely wish to publish a friend's work. After reading it, I deemed that it isn't too technical for us laymen. So, without further ado...
Up the hill and through the woods to Bernanke’s house we go!
All I have been hearing for the past several months is how bad the economy is. Person upon person, economists, analysts, portfolio managers alike, have been bemoaning the stock market and how it has bounced too high after the recessionary low in the beginning of March. Dead cat bounce, dead cat bounce echoes through the grand ballrooms of old class money men whose noses are too far up their own asses to realize what has just happened. It’s the same narcissistic tone that makes me shudder when I hear cries for the heads of Goldman Sachs traders because they had the balls to trade when they SHOULD be trading. There are two points I wish to make very clear here as to the reality of the current economy and what the past five months has provided.
First, the July unemployment report came out today, 9.4%. Yes, 9.4% is an awful number, but this is down from 9.5% the previous month, marking the first sequential decline since April 2008. This was HUGE! Unemployment is a lagging indicator, meaning that it will be the last indicator to correct itself as the economy comes out of the recession. All this talk about going from bad to less bad, the reality is that we have passed the worst of this, which occurred late last fall, and we have also passed the worst of this cycle in the stock markets which as I have already pointed out occurred in the beginning of March. The point of this matter is perception is reality, and right now Mr. Market is telling us that the economy is getting better. Companies have reduced their expenses so that their top line is declining faster than their bottom line. You know what this tells me? That once the consumer comes back to the market, which is the most important thing and directly related to unemployment, businesses are going to kick ass. More top line growth with a new and smaller expense scale equals margins and revenues that will quickly propel this economy back to where it was pre-hybrid real estate espionage. The only thing that is going to keep us from completely rocking is the growth of China and there increasing desire to take more and more global economic responsibility.
The second issue I would like to discuss is about how people want to piss and moan about the bonuses being paid to traders and their ilk. Perfect example: Goldman Sachs. Look, these guys just finished up their best quarter ever! That says a lot as every other company in their line of business is reporting write downs and losses or marginally better reports. Goldman has some of the smartest guys in the business, FACT, and they realized that back in the early spring was the absolute best time to get risky and place big bets on the market. The reason why? Only place to go was up! I have no sympathy for hedge funds, mutual funds etc out there who missed this move because I killed it, and if I can kill it, then these portfolio managers with years upon years of experience should have realized that with the valuations that were implied that all anyone could do was make money in the market, all you had to do was stand there. So please excuse Goldman Sachs for being a realist, excuse them for shutting their mouth (after it nibbled on the tit of the U.S. Government), putting pen to paper, fingers to keypads and money to their wallets.
The Realist
August 7, 2009
----
I'm pretty sure, The Realist has started a blog, and is one of my followers. So to contact him, or read further posts, please visit his blog. Thanks.
Up the hill and through the woods to Bernanke’s house we go!
All I have been hearing for the past several months is how bad the economy is. Person upon person, economists, analysts, portfolio managers alike, have been bemoaning the stock market and how it has bounced too high after the recessionary low in the beginning of March. Dead cat bounce, dead cat bounce echoes through the grand ballrooms of old class money men whose noses are too far up their own asses to realize what has just happened. It’s the same narcissistic tone that makes me shudder when I hear cries for the heads of Goldman Sachs traders because they had the balls to trade when they SHOULD be trading. There are two points I wish to make very clear here as to the reality of the current economy and what the past five months has provided.
First, the July unemployment report came out today, 9.4%. Yes, 9.4% is an awful number, but this is down from 9.5% the previous month, marking the first sequential decline since April 2008. This was HUGE! Unemployment is a lagging indicator, meaning that it will be the last indicator to correct itself as the economy comes out of the recession. All this talk about going from bad to less bad, the reality is that we have passed the worst of this, which occurred late last fall, and we have also passed the worst of this cycle in the stock markets which as I have already pointed out occurred in the beginning of March. The point of this matter is perception is reality, and right now Mr. Market is telling us that the economy is getting better. Companies have reduced their expenses so that their top line is declining faster than their bottom line. You know what this tells me? That once the consumer comes back to the market, which is the most important thing and directly related to unemployment, businesses are going to kick ass. More top line growth with a new and smaller expense scale equals margins and revenues that will quickly propel this economy back to where it was pre-hybrid real estate espionage. The only thing that is going to keep us from completely rocking is the growth of China and there increasing desire to take more and more global economic responsibility.
The second issue I would like to discuss is about how people want to piss and moan about the bonuses being paid to traders and their ilk. Perfect example: Goldman Sachs. Look, these guys just finished up their best quarter ever! That says a lot as every other company in their line of business is reporting write downs and losses or marginally better reports. Goldman has some of the smartest guys in the business, FACT, and they realized that back in the early spring was the absolute best time to get risky and place big bets on the market. The reason why? Only place to go was up! I have no sympathy for hedge funds, mutual funds etc out there who missed this move because I killed it, and if I can kill it, then these portfolio managers with years upon years of experience should have realized that with the valuations that were implied that all anyone could do was make money in the market, all you had to do was stand there. So please excuse Goldman Sachs for being a realist, excuse them for shutting their mouth (after it nibbled on the tit of the U.S. Government), putting pen to paper, fingers to keypads and money to their wallets.
The Realist
August 7, 2009
----
I'm pretty sure, The Realist has started a blog, and is one of my followers. So to contact him, or read further posts, please visit his blog. Thanks.
Quote of the Day: 8/19/09
"Apathy is the glove in which evil slips its hand."
- Professor McDougal
"Van Wilder"
- Professor McDougal
"Van Wilder"
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Status Update
Sorry for not posting in a while... I've been on vacation and sick (probably with the Swine Flu - the most dangerous disease currently known to the sensationalist media) for the past 10 or so days. Ultimately, I would like to be posting 2 articles a week, hopefully a Monday and a Friday article... so that's the plan. Anyway, i figured I'd post an update justifying my absence. Also, if anyone has an idea for a blog post, feel free to write it in the comments section.
Quote of the Day: 8/10/2009
"That's what I hate about the war on drugs. All day long we see those commercials: 'Here's your brain, here's your brain on drugs', 'Just Say No', 'Why do you think they call it dope?' … And then the next commercial is [singing] 'This Bud's for yooouuuu.' C'mon, everybody, let's be hypocritical bastards. It's okay to drink your drug. We meant those other drugs. Those untaxed drugs. Those are the ones that are bad for you."
- Bill Hicks
- Bill Hicks
Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/8/09
"No drug, not even alcohol, causes the fundamental ills of society. If we're looking for the source of our troubles, we shouldn't test people for drugs, we should test them for stupidity, ignorance, greed, and love of power."
- P.J. O'Rourke
- P.J. O'Rourke
Saturday, August 8, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/7/09
"June twenty-ninth. I gotta get in shape. Too much sitting has ruined my body. Too much abuse has gone on for too long. From now on there will be 50 pushups each morning, 50 pullups. There will be no more pills, no more bad food, no more destroyers of my body. From now on will be total organization. Every muscle must be tight."
-Robert De Niro
'Taxi Driver'"
-Robert De Niro
'Taxi Driver'"
Friday, August 7, 2009
Quote of the Day: 8/6/09
"Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because, if there be one, he must more approve the homage of reason, than that of blindfolded fear"
-Thomas Jefferson
-Thomas Jefferson
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Sports: The Phillies Rotation
Considering this is my first post related to sports, i figure i should inform me readers (or lack there of) of my allegiances. Growing up in the Philly area, my allegiances lie with all Philly sports team, bar none. While baseball and football are my two main loves, i also root for the Flyers and Sixers (although, i'll be the first to admit that i can be bandwagon sixers fan). That being said, let me delve into a little sports discussion regarding the Phillies.
The Phillies recently acquired Clifton Phifer Lee (Cliff Lee). Lee is a stud, Lee won the Cy Young for the AL last year, Lee is the missing piece to the phillies rotation. Lee, Lee, Lee... i only plan on buying a Lee shirt if the Phills re-sign him next year. Here is a cartoon illustrating my point. Special thanks to Kurt Snibbe and ESPN, for allowing me to use this comic. (Feel free to check out more of Kurt's daily cartoons at http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/index
As you can see this cartoon illustrates my point. The Phillies rotation has been struggling this year. Cole Hamels seems to have a mental issue... it always happens to those young guys... Don't get me wrong, i love Cole, some even claim i have a "man-crush" but whenever you get nicknamed "Hollywood" in the off season, things are prolly not gonna be as good the next year...
So Cole has been struggling and Jamie "Grampa" Moyer has an ERA hovering below 6.00. While Blanton has been up and down during the beginning of the year, he has begun to turn it on in his last 4-5 starts. I think he will continue to excel, based on the fact that he claimed he watched his delivery during the year, and realized some mistake he was making when runners were on. So with those three out the way, let's address the other "new" phillies starters.
Ciff Lee - awesome, first game with the Phills and he throws a complete game, and goes 2-4 at the plate... not bad considering he has less than 5 career hits (although he been playing in the AL)
J.A. Happ - young gunna, this young stud has been tearing it up since moving into the rotation. He's young, his ERA is under 3.00 and he wants to be a go-to pitcher. Check, Check, and Check... Happ is another exciting young player.
Rodrigo Lopez - Who? yea, he's kind of a filler, but i ended up seeing his first outing as a phillie. I was hoping to see Happ that day, but beggars can't be choosers. No other info needed... he's heading to the pen.
and last and certainly LEAST Pedro "Mangos = Steroids" Martinez. Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, where do i begin. First off, he is a tough RHP (right handed pitcher), so that alone is a reason why the Phills will need him (being lefty dominant). However, any starting pitcher the Mets dont want, always worries me... granted he wanted much more before the season, and the Phills got him dirt cheap. What concerns me the most is that with Pedro entering the rotation, he is going to squeeze Moyer or Happ to the pen... all sources i've read point to Happ... I've tossed and turned with this idea for a while... While Happ is pitching amazing, he is young, and keeping his inning count to a minimum wouldnt be a bad idea... however, i have no love for Pedro, so screw him, i love Happ.
But i think the bottom line is this: With the addition of Lee, our playoff rotation will be sufficient enough without Happ. You figure, Lee, Hamels, Blanton/Pedro, Lee, Hamels, Blanton/Pedro, Lee... That gives us two stud Leftys, then Rightys Blanton or Pedro, for games 3 and 6, then throw Lee again in game 7... Hopefully, every series ends early with a quick W for the Phills... ya know, like last year...
So there's a 3/4 through the season assessment of the Phillies rotation... i dont need to dissect their bats that much, because quite frankly, their bats are killin it.
The Phillies recently acquired Clifton Phifer Lee (Cliff Lee). Lee is a stud, Lee won the Cy Young for the AL last year, Lee is the missing piece to the phillies rotation. Lee, Lee, Lee... i only plan on buying a Lee shirt if the Phills re-sign him next year. Here is a cartoon illustrating my point. Special thanks to Kurt Snibbe and ESPN, for allowing me to use this comic. (Feel free to check out more of Kurt's daily cartoons at http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/index
As you can see this cartoon illustrates my point. The Phillies rotation has been struggling this year. Cole Hamels seems to have a mental issue... it always happens to those young guys... Don't get me wrong, i love Cole, some even claim i have a "man-crush" but whenever you get nicknamed "Hollywood" in the off season, things are prolly not gonna be as good the next year...
So Cole has been struggling and Jamie "Grampa" Moyer has an ERA hovering below 6.00. While Blanton has been up and down during the beginning of the year, he has begun to turn it on in his last 4-5 starts. I think he will continue to excel, based on the fact that he claimed he watched his delivery during the year, and realized some mistake he was making when runners were on. So with those three out the way, let's address the other "new" phillies starters.
Ciff Lee - awesome, first game with the Phills and he throws a complete game, and goes 2-4 at the plate... not bad considering he has less than 5 career hits (although he been playing in the AL)
J.A. Happ - young gunna, this young stud has been tearing it up since moving into the rotation. He's young, his ERA is under 3.00 and he wants to be a go-to pitcher. Check, Check, and Check... Happ is another exciting young player.
Rodrigo Lopez - Who? yea, he's kind of a filler, but i ended up seeing his first outing as a phillie. I was hoping to see Happ that day, but beggars can't be choosers. No other info needed... he's heading to the pen.
and last and certainly LEAST Pedro "Mangos = Steroids" Martinez. Pedro, Pedro, Pedro, where do i begin. First off, he is a tough RHP (right handed pitcher), so that alone is a reason why the Phills will need him (being lefty dominant). However, any starting pitcher the Mets dont want, always worries me... granted he wanted much more before the season, and the Phills got him dirt cheap. What concerns me the most is that with Pedro entering the rotation, he is going to squeeze Moyer or Happ to the pen... all sources i've read point to Happ... I've tossed and turned with this idea for a while... While Happ is pitching amazing, he is young, and keeping his inning count to a minimum wouldnt be a bad idea... however, i have no love for Pedro, so screw him, i love Happ.
But i think the bottom line is this: With the addition of Lee, our playoff rotation will be sufficient enough without Happ. You figure, Lee, Hamels, Blanton/Pedro, Lee, Hamels, Blanton/Pedro, Lee... That gives us two stud Leftys, then Rightys Blanton or Pedro, for games 3 and 6, then throw Lee again in game 7... Hopefully, every series ends early with a quick W for the Phills... ya know, like last year...
So there's a 3/4 through the season assessment of the Phillies rotation... i dont need to dissect their bats that much, because quite frankly, their bats are killin it.
Quote of the Day: 8/5/09
"I'm 23 now, but will I live to see 24?
The way things is going, I don't know"
-Coolio
"Gangsta's Paradise"
The way things is going, I don't know"
-Coolio
"Gangsta's Paradise"
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Global Issue: Great Pacific Garbage Patch
To start off the blog, i figured i'd start with a serious issue. Most of the times, i'll prolly write more humorous posts... but for now, let's talk serious.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - never heard of it? Yea, most people haven't. I'm not blaming the media for failing to bring this to the national limelight, but someone's got to take the fall for this...
So what is it?
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a patch of garbage (mainly plastic debris) found in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. "Well, that doesnt sound too bad." Actually, it is; because this garbage patch is TWICE THE SIZE OF TEXAS! I found that to be pretty astonishing, thus the need for caps lock. But really, how can a patch of garbage in the middle of the ocean, twice as big as texas, go un-talked-about by the media? Im not gonna go into a "corporations own the media, corporations pollute the oceans, thus corporations dont want to talk about it" rant, because frankly i dont have the time or energy.
Why it's a problem.
Well, basically, the plastic breaks down and gets into the food chain. Thus fish start dying. Unfortunately, most fish food chains end with humans, so the fish dying out prolly wouldnt be good for anyone that i know... But seriously, should we just allow a huge patch of floating garbage to continue to exist, or do you think we should prolly clean that shit up?
That's the first Global Issue, that i decided to "blog about." If anyone who reads this, has an update on this issue, feel free to share... otherwise, we'll just have to keep living with the fact that a patch of trash twice as big as texas is floating out in the Pacific...
WTF Mankind...
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - never heard of it? Yea, most people haven't. I'm not blaming the media for failing to bring this to the national limelight, but someone's got to take the fall for this...
So what is it?
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is a patch of garbage (mainly plastic debris) found in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. "Well, that doesnt sound too bad." Actually, it is; because this garbage patch is TWICE THE SIZE OF TEXAS! I found that to be pretty astonishing, thus the need for caps lock. But really, how can a patch of garbage in the middle of the ocean, twice as big as texas, go un-talked-about by the media? Im not gonna go into a "corporations own the media, corporations pollute the oceans, thus corporations dont want to talk about it" rant, because frankly i dont have the time or energy.
Why it's a problem.
Well, basically, the plastic breaks down and gets into the food chain. Thus fish start dying. Unfortunately, most fish food chains end with humans, so the fish dying out prolly wouldnt be good for anyone that i know... But seriously, should we just allow a huge patch of floating garbage to continue to exist, or do you think we should prolly clean that shit up?
That's the first Global Issue, that i decided to "blog about." If anyone who reads this, has an update on this issue, feel free to share... otherwise, we'll just have to keep living with the fact that a patch of trash twice as big as texas is floating out in the Pacific...
WTF Mankind...
Blog Beginning
Today, i've started this blog. Exciting, i know. So to start the blog off, i figured i'd detail some to the topics to come. Basically, this blog will consist of posts related to:
- Sports (all sports, focusing primarily on Philly Sports and my Fantasy Teams)
- Movies (current, and past favorites)
- Quotes of the Day (hopefully i can archive these)
- Random Polls
- Global/Societal Issues
So that's that... I think i'll go ahead and put some random posts that i've already written to start to beef this bitch up.
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