Jack Johnson: Oracle?

This is something that's been bothering me for awhile in a big way, and I really need to share it (before anyone else makes the connection).

By now we've all heard about Deepwater Horizon and the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. It's about a three hour drive for me to the nearest oil-soaked beach, so it hits pretty close to home, but I'll get to the point: I was listening to a song from Jack Johnson's 2003 album, "On and On," when I realized the lyrics were eerily relevant to the crisis in the gulf.

Have a listen:

Revival

I've been trying to re-evaluate the usefulness of this blog. Originally, I started it as a sort of bulletin board of English assignments, but when that dried up it turned into more of a scarcely-updated political/zombie blog (not to be confused with political zombies).

I decided that I would abandon this project until I got some materials together to start an entirely new blog. Then I started another English class.

First essay post is tomorrow.

Don't Swallow the Seeds

Based on a true story.

From My Comics

Okay, so maybe not so true.

Youtube Videos We Can Believe In

Already, the President-elect is bringing about change in the way our government works. For those who don't remember their history lessons, Franklin Roosevelt made history by circumventing the press and speaking directly to the people via his periodic Fireside Chats. The tradition hasn't died, and while Presidents Kennedy and Reagan mastered the transition to television, Obama is bringing a new act to the table three-quarters of a century later.

For the first time, the President's weekly messages to the public are taped not only for radio broadcast, but for publication on the web. The weekly videos are to be posted on Youtube for easy access by everyone.

The Obama Administration has created a website specifically for the transition into the White House, which you can find here.

Now if only our new President could stop fiddling with his Blackberry.

From Sea to Shining Sea

On November 4th, 2008, America made history.


Yes we can.

A Legend Passes

This comes a bit late, but I am inclined to make a mention anyway. Many have already heard, but famed comedian George Carlin passed away in Santa Monica, California last Sunday as a result of heart failure. Carlin reveled in his status as a contemporary great, a comedic milestone, and a social philosopher.

His only major regret in life, as stated by himself, was the impact his drug use has had on his daughter. George Carlin's comedy has entertained millions, and his truth has affected many of us. Carlin was 71.

Bush Booed

In what must be an unprecedented event in American history, President George W. Bush was openly booed when he appeared at the Washington Nationals baseball game on Sunday (3/30/08). The President appeared to throw the ceremonial first pitch of the season - a remarkably good pitch, I understand, where Presidents are concerned.

President Bush appears to what could generously be called a mixed reception.

It's remarkable how everyone involved manages to ignore the crowd.

And I thought I wouldn't have anything else to post about this month.

Yes, We ALL Can

There probably isn't anybody who's going to read this who isn't well aware of my support for Barack Obama's campaign bid. With that said, a video was posted on Youtube today interviewing a class of students from the Bronx High School of Performance and Stagecraft and their reactions to Obama's racial speech earlier this month.

Anyone who's attended high school in the last decade should be duly impressed by these kids and their teacher. Obama's right: the American people are not the problem; they are the solution.

Students at Bronx Highschool for Performance and Stagecraft respond to Obama's 3/18 speech on race.

Barack the Vote

If it isn't entirely apparent from previous posts, I'm a huge supporter of Senator Obama's campaign bid. I'm not the type, however, to argue with every other person over politics or what's right for the nation. At least, not unless there's a great fault in an individual's logic.

It's with that thought that I like to bring to attention the popular argument against the good Senator: experience. For his scrambling opponents, experience seems to be the key issue of this campaign. Experience - or rather, Obama's inexperience - appears to be the prime concern with the coming elections, and voters are being made well aware of this fact. Indeed, one would believe from the constant debates that a lack of experience in the executive branch has never been anything other than disastrous.

It's certainly an interesting argument, especially in the light of history. When experience is paramount, I find it interesting that the single most experienced politician ever to be named Commander in Chief has never been regarded as a spectacular leader. In fact, President James Buchanan has been consistently ranked dead last on the ladder of American Presidency. Conversely, Washington, Jackson, and Truman - some of the most renowned presidents in American history - had almost no real experience to speak of. Even Lincoln, the Great Emancipator himself, never attended college.

And let's not forget, nobody had a longer curriculum vitæ than Cheney or Rumsfeld.

In related news, Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am, in conjunction with director Jesse Dylan, produced a rather inspirational music video promoting Senator Obama's campaign. The song is written almost entirely using excerpts from Obama's speeches, and is called "Yes We Can."

Well, 2007 is officially dead and gone, and most of us have long since ushered in the new year. Others, such as myself, keep writing 2007 on all of our papers.

Since I returned from the relatively-frigid north in time for the New Year, I've been busily working towards a previously-unknown equilibrium between the various elements in my life. Needless to say, my efforts have since taken a backseat to the real world. I have, however, begun work on compiling my photography into various public albums. While I am slipping further and further from fulfillment of my previous promise to deliver on a photo gallery of my East Coast trip, I have uploaded several albums as a sort of atonement.

Dia de los Muertos Celebration

On a fairly interesting side note, technology blog Gizmodo seems to have made quite a stir at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year. While Richard Blakeley's stunt is - quite honestly - hilarious, journalists and fellow bloggers alike are up in arms over the gradeschool humor. While repercussions won't likely extend beyond Blakeley's blacklisting, Rafe Needleman has some valid concerns.

Still, MAKE's TV-B-Gone does look pretty nifty.

Christmas Excuses

Christmas is drawing closer with every passing hour, and the stresses of presents and cards and family have seen their welcomes worn. It's been a busy month, and I intend to apologize for the lack of content, but I'll be on a plane late this afternoon, so it will have to wait.

Below are a couple of photographs from this past summer. Keep your eyes out for a full album containing these photos in early January.

These photographs were taken during my time spent last summer on the road from Florida to Maine. The first photograph was taken in Newport, Rhode Island along the cliff walk there. The second two photos were taken in Hampden, Maine and Richmond, Virginia, respectively. The last picture was taken at a shiplock in Richmond. The photograph at the top was taken in Tavernier, FL, and features a Monroe County Police Officer and a man with conviction.

Flying Cars Shot Down - The Onion

Fans of The Onion, a parody newspaper based out of New York, have undoubtedly been enamoured with the additions of Radio News and Network News pieces over the past several years. The straight-faced stories satirize history, popular culture, current events, and are consistently outrageous in the most delightful way. Featured below is the most recent headline:

Mean Automakers Dash Nation's Hope For Flying Cars

Mean Automakers Dash Nation's Hope For Flying Cars

Cartographers, rejoice!

Here's an interesting, if not subtly disturbing story: the massive fields of ice that have for so long prevented maritime shipping along the Northwest Passage have receded to the lowest levels since satellite measurements began some 30 years ago. With the region navigable, thousands of miles could be cleft from current shipping routes which rely on the Panama Canal for passage between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, resulting in a drop in travel distance from nearly 13,000 nautical miles to less than 8,000. The previous low for Arctic ice levels was in 2005, when the ice had dropped to around 1.5 million square miles. What's particularly unsettling is the two-year, 500 thousand square mile drop that has brought the ice in the region to a paltry 1 million square miles.

Interestingly enough, sovereignty disagreements are beginning to stir regarding the seemingly-valuable region.