7/14/2006
well... i figured i'd put up an entry by grabbing some news and throwing my 2 cents at it
World's Largest Photo
First off, I can't believe that they'd run this story without a picture of the photo in question. To me that just seems obvious to have. Beyond that, this just seems utterly awesome. I like that they've gone back to an old-fashioned way of taking pictures. Especially since, in today's world, people are always focused on digital everything, and sometimes older methods are just fine. Photography is the key example, since film allows for so much in photography, and digital has completely overran it. Sure, digital has its uses, but so does film, and film has so much more quality to it, too.
Early election polling
Well, first of all, when we're looking at hundreds of districts... less than 800 people doesn't sound like that thorough a survey. I mean, thats basicly less than 2 people per district, so I don't think theres much to go on. Plus, I don't think its as much of a landslide as the article makes it out to be.
Granted, Bush is really doing badly, and this'll definitly be a tough election, but that alone doesn't mean the Democrats will benefit. Bad Republican image doesn't mean the image of Democrats isn't plenty tarnished itself. Also, it comes down to who will view Congress and Bush as seperate and who won't. Plenty of people unhappy with Bush may still back Republican candidates for congress. Also, it'll be interesting to see what happens as far as the influence of the illegal immigration issue. If that continues to effect things as much as it did in San Diego's special elections, it will be a big boost for conservatives nationwide. Granted, there's plenty of Republicans that won't benefit from illegal immigration being an issue because they're open border, but you'd be hard pressed to find districts where the democrat is more in favour of cracking down on illegal immigration than the republican is.
Corporations Embracing YouTube
This is really interesting stuff to read about, especially given how major entertainment companies have treated other things online, like P2P filesharing. There are more limits with YouTube to prevent it becoming that, of course, but YouTube does have a lot of potential. Heck, its getting there already with movie trailers being put on it. If companies choose to work with YouTube, and are able to do so without destroying it, then I think it will definitly be a good sign for future innovations on the net.
Dinosaur National Monument Closed
Not much to say on that, other than its sad and a shame, and i'm disappointed now that I never got a chance to visit it the rare trips to Utah that I've had.
Israel vs Lebanon
The whole Israel vs Lebanon thing is very concerning... much as I can see exactly why Israel would take action against Hezbollah, I'm not sure how much responsibility Lebanon really has. Attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon is one thing, but attacks against Lebanon in general? I'd hold Syria far more responsible, given Syria's recent history of treating Lebanon as an arm of itself, nearly, to help antagonise Israel. Its getting messy, but it feels more like the people of Lebanon, for the most part, are stuck in the middle between Syria antagonising Israel and Israel defending itself. Just hope Iran doesn't feel neccessary to get involved.
and finally:
Police give fashion advice
And once again, there go cops ruining everyone's fun.
World's Largest Photo
About 30 people showed up Wednesday to see the fuzzy, 28-by-108 foot black-and-white image taken by six photographers from the nonprofit Legacy Project. The photo, taken Saturday, shows the control towers, palm trees and a portable toilet.
First off, I can't believe that they'd run this story without a picture of the photo in question. To me that just seems obvious to have. Beyond that, this just seems utterly awesome. I like that they've gone back to an old-fashioned way of taking pictures. Especially since, in today's world, people are always focused on digital everything, and sometimes older methods are just fine. Photography is the key example, since film allows for so much in photography, and digital has completely overran it. Sure, digital has its uses, but so does film, and film has so much more quality to it, too.
Early election polling
The AP-Ipsos survey asked 789 registered voters if the election for the House were held today, would they vote for the Democratic or Republican candidate in their district. Democrats were favored 51 percent to 40 percent.
Not surprisingly, 81 percent of self-described liberals said they would vote for the Democrat. Among moderates, though, 56 percent backed a Democrat in their district and almost a quarter of conservatives — 24 percent — said they will vote Democratic.
Well, first of all, when we're looking at hundreds of districts... less than 800 people doesn't sound like that thorough a survey. I mean, thats basicly less than 2 people per district, so I don't think theres much to go on. Plus, I don't think its as much of a landslide as the article makes it out to be.
Granted, Bush is really doing badly, and this'll definitly be a tough election, but that alone doesn't mean the Democrats will benefit. Bad Republican image doesn't mean the image of Democrats isn't plenty tarnished itself. Also, it comes down to who will view Congress and Bush as seperate and who won't. Plenty of people unhappy with Bush may still back Republican candidates for congress. Also, it'll be interesting to see what happens as far as the influence of the illegal immigration issue. If that continues to effect things as much as it did in San Diego's special elections, it will be a big boost for conservatives nationwide. Granted, there's plenty of Republicans that won't benefit from illegal immigration being an issue because they're open border, but you'd be hard pressed to find districts where the democrat is more in favour of cracking down on illegal immigration than the republican is.
Corporations Embracing YouTube
Moonves marveled when Hurley informed him that YouTube's steadily expanding audience is now watching about 100 million videos per day. He asked how YouTube might be able to direct more traffic to Web sites owned by CBS. The meeting ended with Moonves concluding that CBS should start posting daily snippets of its programming on YouTube.
This is really interesting stuff to read about, especially given how major entertainment companies have treated other things online, like P2P filesharing. There are more limits with YouTube to prevent it becoming that, of course, but YouTube does have a lot of potential. Heck, its getting there already with movie trailers being put on it. If companies choose to work with YouTube, and are able to do so without destroying it, then I think it will definitly be a good sign for future innovations on the net.
Dinosaur National Monument Closed
Mary Risser, superintendent of the Dinosaur National Monument, said the building "will remain closed indefinitely until significant life, health and safety issues are addressed."
Not much to say on that, other than its sad and a shame, and i'm disappointed now that I never got a chance to visit it the rare trips to Utah that I've had.
Israel vs Lebanon
The whole Israel vs Lebanon thing is very concerning... much as I can see exactly why Israel would take action against Hezbollah, I'm not sure how much responsibility Lebanon really has. Attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon is one thing, but attacks against Lebanon in general? I'd hold Syria far more responsible, given Syria's recent history of treating Lebanon as an arm of itself, nearly, to help antagonise Israel. Its getting messy, but it feels more like the people of Lebanon, for the most part, are stuck in the middle between Syria antagonising Israel and Israel defending itself. Just hope Iran doesn't feel neccessary to get involved.
and finally:
Police give fashion advice
Women going on boozy nights out have been warned by police to "wear nice pants" in case they fall down drunk in the street.
...
"If you fall over or pass out, remember your skirt or dress may ride up," the magazine says. "You could show off more than you intended -- for all our sakes, please make sure you're wearing nice pants and that you've recently had a wax."
And once again, there go cops ruining everyone's fun.
7/06/2006
For the sake of putting something here...
well, nothing going on other than my house getting AC, meaning I'm up early to sit around as stuff gets installed.
Though, things are about to get moving, starting with Pirates tonight, and again tomorrow night
so now, to fill space... a post on patriotism:
In my view patriotism is, in essense, taking pride in who you are. Just as there are people that take pride in race, religion or gender, nationality is a defining characteristic of who we are as well. If I was born in a different country, I wouldn't be who I am now. My environment does play a key role in shaping who I am, and who doesn't want to have pride in themselves?
For many countries, ethnicity and nationality overlap greatly... and so ethnic pride and patriotism can be the same. For some countries, the US and Australia come to mind offhand, one of the defining traits is that there is so much immigration from around the world that there isn't just one ethnic group. This is also since these are younger countries.
Because there is that element of immigration, most Americans do remember their heritage, and for example, I will say that I've an Irish and Swedish heritage, but I'm an American first and foremost.
I don't think there is anything wrong with being patriotic. I am proud to be an American. I'm proud of many of the ideals that I associate with America. Freedom, opportunity, hope. Now, I'd never say that America is outright the best country on the planet, per se, but I do believe that America is a better country than the lions share of nations. Of course my ideals play a part in this, but when you look at many other countries out there... I don't see how it is an issue.
I also don't think that that is a uniquely American attitude. Beyond people I know that have come here from other countries, my only international travel has been 2 months living in Australia. Every Australian I talked to was proud of Australia. I heard a lot about how great this was or that was. I saw world-famous locations that weren't world famous. But its being proud of who you are. I would expect an Australian to be proud to be Australian just like I'm proud to be an American. It's like playing on a team. You're always gonna like your team most.
However, even with that, it doesn't mean I have an issue with every other country. I could very well live in Australia. I love the country. Heck, I'm having trouble waiting till Sunday when I get some Australian food. But even if I was living in Australia, I would still be an American, just an American living in Australia, because its America that I feel closest to, ideologically.
Then again, I also know my ancestory, when they came to America, gave up their prior nationalities because they wanted to be Americans. There was something about being an American that they believed in. They learned English and assimilated. The cultural heritage wasn't forgotten, they just became Americans as well.
So I guess my in short sum-up of that is...Patriotism, when not blinding, is just a natural pride in a group one belongs to.
well, nothing going on other than my house getting AC, meaning I'm up early to sit around as stuff gets installed.
Though, things are about to get moving, starting with Pirates tonight, and again tomorrow night
so now, to fill space... a post on patriotism:
In my view patriotism is, in essense, taking pride in who you are. Just as there are people that take pride in race, religion or gender, nationality is a defining characteristic of who we are as well. If I was born in a different country, I wouldn't be who I am now. My environment does play a key role in shaping who I am, and who doesn't want to have pride in themselves?
For many countries, ethnicity and nationality overlap greatly... and so ethnic pride and patriotism can be the same. For some countries, the US and Australia come to mind offhand, one of the defining traits is that there is so much immigration from around the world that there isn't just one ethnic group. This is also since these are younger countries.
Because there is that element of immigration, most Americans do remember their heritage, and for example, I will say that I've an Irish and Swedish heritage, but I'm an American first and foremost.
I don't think there is anything wrong with being patriotic. I am proud to be an American. I'm proud of many of the ideals that I associate with America. Freedom, opportunity, hope. Now, I'd never say that America is outright the best country on the planet, per se, but I do believe that America is a better country than the lions share of nations. Of course my ideals play a part in this, but when you look at many other countries out there... I don't see how it is an issue.
I also don't think that that is a uniquely American attitude. Beyond people I know that have come here from other countries, my only international travel has been 2 months living in Australia. Every Australian I talked to was proud of Australia. I heard a lot about how great this was or that was. I saw world-famous locations that weren't world famous. But its being proud of who you are. I would expect an Australian to be proud to be Australian just like I'm proud to be an American. It's like playing on a team. You're always gonna like your team most.
However, even with that, it doesn't mean I have an issue with every other country. I could very well live in Australia. I love the country. Heck, I'm having trouble waiting till Sunday when I get some Australian food. But even if I was living in Australia, I would still be an American, just an American living in Australia, because its America that I feel closest to, ideologically.
Then again, I also know my ancestory, when they came to America, gave up their prior nationalities because they wanted to be Americans. There was something about being an American that they believed in. They learned English and assimilated. The cultural heritage wasn't forgotten, they just became Americans as well.
So I guess my in short sum-up of that is...Patriotism, when not blinding, is just a natural pride in a group one belongs to.
