I want to write something. Something good.

Fuck.

Chirp Chirp

I like this time of year because its the only time I can be wrapping up a night at 1-3am and hear birds calling in the trees. Its really nice actually. A few hours of booze, beer and booming music and I can still come home and hear robins calling each other from the trees before I go to bed. Its relaxing.

Wash, rinse, repeate

Oct 06 - Oklahoma, fees won
Nov 06 - Louisiana, fees won, $1.71 million
July 06 - Minnesota, fees won
April 06 - Michigan, fees won, $182,000
Dec 05 - California
Dec 05 - Illinois, twice fees won, $510,000
July 04 - Washington, twice fees won, $344,000 and $180,000
March 04 - Indiana, fees won, $318,000


Just sit and total that up for a second, the 5 min I used to research that, thats 10 court cases at the state or appeals level, where the 1st amendment has triumphed over laws regulating video game sales to minors. Thats not even all of them and the five that I do have final decisions details from, those states have collectively lost just over 3 million dollars to paying court and legal fees to the ESA (entertainment software association) --- 3,000,000 dollars --- not gone to police, fire departments, or schools, to argue that it should be against the law to sell 17 year old a $60 game.

Remember first that it is NOT illegal for a minor to rent an R rated movie or buy a ticket for that movie. Mind you that this is not alcohol, and that no one is trying to prevent anyone else from buying that you can't buy a game FOR a 17 year old. The 17 year old can't get in trouble for playing such a game or owning it, just purchasing. Mind you that a store clerk cannot sell a minor an M rated video game (often less graphic or suggestive than a movie rated PG-13) due to every retail store policy. And read you some interesting facts about video gamers at large:

67% of American heads of households play computer or video games
The average game player age is: 33
In 2007, 24% of gamers were over the age of 50
38% of game players are female
The best-selling video game super-genre by units sold for 2006 was "Strategy," with 27.5% of video games and 35.4% of computer games sold
55% of parents believe games are a positive part of their childrens' lives
47% of online game players are female

All that and today Governor Schwarzenegger said, "I signed this important measure to ensure that parents are involved in determining which video games are appropriate for their children" and said he could continue the legal battle to put in effect a law he signed in October 2005, and was suspended and brought before a judge immediately. How much money exactly does he want to throw away on this?

consolidation...

I've been thinking, as usual, but I haven't spoken a word to anyone since about 8 or 9 last night, so about 16-17 hours or so now. What I was thinking about was that apparently to to headline news its some kind of super tuesday today and spewing all kinds of poll information that is useless. I dont need to know women prefer hillary to obama. guess what, they're women! wow. prize for the sharp tax up front who got that one.
Anyways aside from obvious issues like war and abortion, politicians just dont care about any of the issues that stand out to me. free speech issues, mommy-state legislation like video game bans, this insane school in VA that banned all kinds of physical contact what so ever, and other stuff like net neutrality all show that no one who is in charge of anything has any clue about technology or modern issues. The RIAA is still allowed to continue to circumvent the law in order to shake down anyone who's ever ran a p2p program, or hell, people who dont even OWN a computer. Or abuses of business practices, for example: Why do we have to buy a $95 package of cable internet with a massive tv package or just $80 for cable and $20 basic cable.

I'm pretty sure I just ate a day's worth, wait no make that 102% of a days worth of salt from a meal at McDonald's. Opps, but that is a little sick and wrong, but what I'm mentioned this for is to set up this little story. As I walked out of the store to my car I saw a minivan with the bumper sticker "Abortion is not healthcare" And honestly I just wonder who the hell writes these things. I wanted to stop and ask the driver what in the hell it meant. The statement doesnt make any sense. I understand its trying to say "I'm aggenit" but really now, that one just sucks, it doesn't even bother to say what all the real anti-abortionists are trying to say, "You are all sinners and I hope you burn in hell babykiller." I saw the guy loading his 2-3 kids back into the car as I went by and I wondered to myself, and nearly stopped to ask him some questions about his stance based on the bumpersticker. The first being, what would change his stance on abortion? Would it be 'healthcare' if the next time his wife was carrying, the baby was going to threaten her life. Would he just say tough luck sweetie, see you in heaven, I'm going to remarry your sister? Or if the little long haired daughter of his, who was chewing on her happy meal toy, was raped on the church's young adult group trip in the city 15-20 years from now. The non-religious stance of the sticker was really what intrigued me. I'm used to people who stand that way based on their misconceptions of religion, stupid statements like associating abortions as a form of birth control or how a fetus is the same thing as a fully grown human, I dont think anyone sees a traumatic surgical procedure the same way they see a condom. And I certainly dont think a fetus would do much living without a living mother, where as a newborn will. Anyways, I kinda want to get into it with a religious anti-abortionist (not that its some 'special' kind) and just at the end of it just say I hope that God one day changes his mind and that I would pray for him to find his way. I don't think a lot of people taking a stance like that would be able to respond to that, taking their own faith, which they are used to wielding like a weapon to control others. turned around on them, have someone treat them like they are the one going to hell, they are the wicked Jesus-less devil. So much of those kind of people's armor is made of the assurance (illusion) that they are better than others, they are above and beyond others on moral ground and have the right to talk down to people.


In other news, Joyce is pretty cool in a first date kind of way, you know where you only talk about what your favorite movies, music, books are way. She and I overlap on a lot of music and movie stuff and when we were talking it was just nice to say outright once that Jack Johnson, the Shins, and 'Dave' suck, and that even if I did, I wouldn't own up to it because I dont want to be associated with your fans.


I also wish people would use the word shiny as a replacement for good. Like "Everything is shiny" or "How did that interview go?" and respond "Shiny"

Also I haven't done my daily ritual of listening to a song abusively loud therapy in days, maybe weeks before yesterday, I just did it though and I feel excellent now.

And just a small pattern I've noticed in my life, the amount of people who have used the phrase "if only" to me in a tragic way is truly staggering and I'm going to go apeshit if I keep hearing it.

Jesus christ

While the song "Leave out all the Rest" plays on, I clean up the phonebook on my cell phone.

I sit and stare at my grandfathers cellphone number, we got it for him for emergencies. He passed away last summer. I miss him. And I'm not deleting his number yet. I'm not ready for that.

I miss you grampa.

or am I looking too deeply...

When we first started being proud of being Americans everyone put up a little flag sticker in their car, or bought a T-shirt with the newspaper's mast-head on the back or something like that. But thats all over, we're pissed off again, ashamed of our leaders, angry with everyone in the press except John Stewart. What I've noticed is that it all seemed to have happened as the cheap dye in those shirts began to fade and as the ink of those car window stickers turned that awful beige color. As a nation of mostly consumers I find it funny and yet unsurprising that strong emotions and convictions turned just as fast as those poorly made car stickers. - I mean anyone who actually cared about the country or had any pride in the matter would have replaced that sticker by now with a fresh new one wouldn't you think? Sticker or not, it is still the american flag which should be treated with an amount of respect and since they don't seem to mind the yellowed perversion left on their rear window, I can only surmise at their core, they didn't really care.

And this is why I'm voting for him...

Doyle refuses funding for abstinence-only education


Under SPRANS, teachers would be required to exclusively promote abstinence as “the only certain way to avoid out-of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and other associated health problems,” according to a WFPRHA statement.

“The issue is it requires abstinence-only education, and really the best model for preventing pregnancy and STDs is having multiple approaches,” said Stephanie Marquis, spokesperson for the Department of Heath and Family Services. “It’s not really a moral decision for us, it’s about [people’s] health.”


“When you have a population of high school students, you have some fairly sexually experienced people in that group,” he said. “When a teacher comes in there and starts with the premise that we’re going to teach you abstinence-only sex education, you’ve lost the battle before you start.”


Enough said. I dont even need to post more.