Last night, I watched Michael Moore’s latest documentary, Capitalism: A Love Story. For me, the film was extraordinary. I felt Moore brilliantly assembled and told a story that was moving, shocking, depressing, alarming, uplifting, and hopeful all at the same time. Best of all, I thought he did it without a political agenda. In fact, it was clear that the story was an American one, not a Republican or a Democratic one.
Posted in Sociology | Tagged capitalism, class, love, michael, middle, moore, right, story, war, wrong | Leave a Comment »
Today, another anti-gay Republican came out of the closet. That’s right, another supposed conservative who dedicated himself to raging against gay people is, himself, gay. What’s up with that? How can someone deny who they are while, at the same time, doing everything they can to destroy others like them? Talk about a severe case of denial. Is it that these people rage against gays in an effort to try to force themselves out of being gay?
Posted in Politics, Sociology | Tagged anti-gay, conservative, discrimination, gay, god, hate, hatred | Leave a Comment »
So the shiny new version of your service-based software just passed QA and you’re ready to “go live”. It is an exciting time as those countless market studies, requirements meetings, user stories, design discussions, development hours, and bug-fix cycles are about to pay off. Oh yeah, customers can’t wait to get their hands on the new features and the executive team can’t wait to see a return on their investment. At this point, all you need to do is copy and modify a few binaries, configuration files, and tables right?
Posted in Software | Tagged availability, deployability, deployment, drift, environment, environmental, environments, high, redundancy, SaaS, sdl | 1 Comment »
I love my Wrangler. I’m using the word love here. heh. (That’s a riff from a line used by Jack Nicholson in “As Good As It Gets“). Anyway, I bought my Jeep last August and have made a number of changes to it. I tinted the glass, upgraded the engine intake, tweaked the ECM, installed a gas tank door, installed a locking gas cap, installed billet pedals, installed a heavy-duty hood lock, installed wheel locks, covered my spare with “Life is Good”, installed an alarm system, installed Lo/Jack, and applied custom decals just above the “Wrangler” logo. The decals were the best addition; I designed them myself using Adobe Illustrator, had them printed by a company specializing in vehicle decals out of Brooklyn, NY, and applied them myself. Overall, I have had a blast upgrading the Jeep and doing the work myself. There are some things I haven’t been able to do like Lo/Jack or the alarm system, but hey… there are some things best left to the pros. No matter what though, it’s a total high!! (And for all you cool teenagers… it’s a natural one.)
Posted in Jeep | Tagged black, hornet, jeep, rubicon, upgrades, wheels, wrangler, yellow | Leave a Comment »
It is really interesting how this world works. In my lifetime, I have endeavored to help people and make a difference without expectation of anything in return. On the whole, I have succeeded more than I have failed. That makes me really proud. Yet, I am fascinated with what I receive, most of the time, for my efforts. Almost without exception, the people I help use me as much as possible and subsequently throw me away when I can no longer be of use to them. Metaphorically speaking, it is like helping someone off the mat only to be kicked in return. What has this world come to? Are human beings nothing more than users? Is stepping on one another to rise to the top at any cost all that we have become?
Posted in Sociology | Tagged abuse, deeds, good, help, hurt, others, punishment, theft, use | 1 Comment »
The U.S. Government is broken. A recent poll, conducted by CNN/Opinion Research Corp., backs that up; 86% of the respondents agreed. I think that sentiment is a direct result of the U.S. Senate in deadlock. Over the past year, I have watched as the Republicans in the U.S. Senate have consistently blocked bill after bill using the filibuster as a threat. Although I find the Democratic Party cowardly for not making them follow through, the consistent obstructionism has been disgusting to watch. How is it possible, in a democracy, that majority rules do not apply?! How is it possible that the minority can exert so much influence that nothing gets done? While I believe the minority should always be heard and should exert some influence on the majority, it should not be able to hold the majority hostage.
Posted in Politics | Tagged filibuster, jettison, remove, repeal, rule 22, senate | Leave a Comment »
I have been studying and practicing the Korean martial art of Taekwondo for twenty two years; twenty three this April. One of my teachers, Master Lee Cutright, once told me for one to become “good” at any one thing, one had to study it, perfect it, and apply it for a minimum of ten years. He couldn’t have been more right, especially about the “minimum” part. After all, I still believe I have much to learn. Yet, after more than reaching that ten-year pinnacle, I have found myself disappointed at what Taekwondo has become.
Posted in Taekwondo | Tagged art, journey, lost, sport, taekwondo | 1 Comment »
