Disclaimers

For me, I get turned right off when I hear some guy rambling on at 1,000 words/min at the end of a radio car dealer commercial (BTW, I don't like car dealers anyhow).  It is even worse when I hear the quick ramblings at the beginning of the commercial, followed by some booming voice, shouting at me to 'get in on this deal'.
The TV commercials, don't typically have the booming voice, but there is an awful lot of small type which flashes on for an insufficient amount of time to read it all (especially if you are a slow reader like myself).

Non Sequitur just had a nice week of comics focused around disclaimers.  There really should be some law forcing the disclaimer to be more upfront (that is, less in the background).

Apparently, the government has been able to figure out how to write such a law, because the drug commercials certainly don't hide their disclaimers.  And you know they would, if they could. ("Can cause irritable bowls, nose bleeds, and sometimes death."  Now THAT is quite a disclaimer.)

Giving healthcare control to the states

I will admit, I am not fully aware of how #Obamacare is effecting my healthcare coverage.
I have been fortunate enough not to have to worry too much about it, as I have worked for companies large enough to provide the coverage for me, and I am just effected by the premium price.  So when it comes to the issues I keep hearing... who decides what procedures I can have, getting coverage with pre-existing conditions, the requirement to have healthcare... well, these have no effect on me... at the moment.
But if #Romney has his way, it could effect me in the future.  Because I live in NY (a blue state) but work for a company based in AZ (a red state).  So when Romney repeals Obamacare and gives it to the states to deal with, which state am I subject to?

Where does the time go?

For the 1 person who reads my blog (Hi M), I know you have been wondering when I would spew out something new.
I am amazed at all the people who can find the time to spew their thoughts on a regular basis into blogs, facebook, twitter, etc.
I am at my computer for most of the day, yet have to make a real effort to spend a few minutes typing some thoughts in here.

I really want to write a piece about "out of context".  The Republican convention really got me thinking about that one, when they theme an entire session around "We Built It".  This theme came from a snippet of a speech by President Obama, in which the Republican machine took part of what he was talking about out of the speech's context.  Thus totally altering the original message of the speech.
I think I could do a nice piece about gun control, because I know that the bit about "the right to bear arms" is taken out of the full context it has in the constitution... however, I need to actually read the amendment to make sure I get my facts straight.

Ah well, where did the time go... I still have to finish my expense report, eat dinner, and get ready for a scout pack meeting, all in the next 90 mins.

l8r

Having to pay for all the Sports channels on Cable

I don't have time to fill this in yet.  But just wanted to mark it as something that I really need to rant about.

I also hate the $3/month rental on the stupid remote.

OK, so I figured I'd better fill this one in.

My beef here is that I found out that more than half my cable bill goes to paying for the Sports channels.
Now, there has to be at least 20 of them.  And I only watch one, occasionally, the Yankee network (YES). And I only watch it because they no longer show games on broadcast TV, and my wife gets into the games once in a while (so I watch along).
Since Sports networks are so much, why aren't they in a separate package, like the movie channels.  That way, I can get cable without having to fund all the sports nuts.
I am sure all the sports nuts are saying, "well then, why do we have to pay for all the non-sports channels, like History and SciFi.", and they would be right.

What we have in the cable TV world is socialism!

Instead of just paying for the channels I want, I have to pay for all the channels.  So I have to help fund the sports channels, which cost too much for just the sports nuts to support.  So the cable company spreads the costs across everyone who wants cable.

I am looking forward to the day when the kids know how to find everything they want to watch on the internet.  Then I can just drop the cable TV.  I find that there is rarely anything I really want to watch on anyway, despite the 200 channels.  Especially since I can watch Stewart and Cobert (the only things worth watching) online.

What's up with saying mass in Latin?

I happen to be an R.C. and, being a non-conformist, there is a lot about religion that rubs me the wrong way (and some day, I might get to commenting on that).
However, I am married to someone who believes we should go to mass every Sunday, so spending an hour a week at mass keeps the peace.  Also, I do believe Christianity provides good moral lessons for the kids.

Well, back to the issue at hand...
At my parish, we have an old-styled pastor, who thinks the Vatican II Council was a travesty.  He thinks the mass should be said in Latin (with the priest facing the alter, and all that old school stuff).  And my question is, 'Why Latin?'.
The original reason why mass was said in Latin was because that is the language everyone (in the region where the church was being formalized by Emperor Constantine I) spoke.  So to say mass in Latin now does not follow the original reason.
And it is not that Jesus spoke Latin at the Last Supper.  Jesus spoke Aramaic, and most likely Hebrew (he was Jewish, and it was the Passover meal).
So the only reason to say a mass in Latin, would be to go back to the dark ages, where the priests tried to hold a some kind level of mysticism over the parishioners.  Speaking in tongues that only the anointed priests understood.

There may be some who are interested in going back to that by-gone age when religion had an air of mystery and awe.  But I think the smell of Bengay off the attendees at a Latin mass would be too much for me to handle.

Here we go!

Despite the fact that my job is technology, I have yet to get into the public blog thing.
Probably because it was so 'hyped' initially, that it would have been to 'conforming' of me to start one.
But, since my artistic sister started her own (kind of) comments on life blog, I could not be out-done.
And since so many things in today's society tick me off, I need an outlet to spew my thoughts (before I get an ulcer).

So today's issue is personal electronics: "Why do we have to be SO connected."


Yes, I have a cell phone (got one once they started having family plans that were reasonably affordable).  Yes, I have a texting plan, which I had to get,  between my daughter's texting (she is averaging 500/day) and people texting my wife and I (probably assuming we have a texting plan), it was more economical.

Now, I sit all day at my computer, so I do have access to email and IM most of the time.  So when I go away from my computer, I want to be away from my work.  I do not want my 'phone' reminding me of work by providing me email and IM as well.  But most of my colleagues apparently don't have anything better to do with their life, so they are always 'on'.

Now, there has been the occassion where it might have come in handy.  But if someone REALLY needs me,  they have my cell #, so why not call?
It used to be, when people left work, the LEFT work.  It is great that technology now allows me to work from home.  But now home is work, w/o co-workers to hang at the coffee pot with.

Ah well, I guess that is enough rambling thoughts for now.