New Format?

I don't know about a new format, but I am trying to take things in a different direction. I've had one vision in my head about this blog for the past four months or so, and it hasn't been easy to do for a lot of reasons. Mostly because I'm not that interested in what the vision was...go figure that one.

So now, instead of having some bizarre mix of civics, non-politics, and semi news that I write up on a weekly basis I'll be trying to take a more spontaneous, opinionated approach. We'll see how that works...maybe it'll keep my interest a little better, and by extrapolation YOUR interest. Since that's kinda the part that matters.

Thanks for checking in!

Vacation

Hey everyone,

Sorry for the lack of posts the past two weeks.

I'm currently on vacation, visiting family in Colorado. That meant no time for posting this past weekend.

The weekend before, when I should have been creating filler material? I was off travelling, visiting a friend of mine who's going to be vanishing off to sea for nine months.

So...poor planning means I've let you blog readers down. But on the plus side, I think my priorities aren't TOO much outta whack.

Thanks for the patience, and regular posting will resume next week!---John

Your Take: "I'm Just Not Political" Recap

Here's what everyone had to say about the question of whether it's really worth it to be an involved citizen.

Joe commented on the post:

For each person, life is all about something different, and for each person, a different passion is the pilot light in their furnace of a brain. For some people, helping others is their passion, and so they go to third world countries to get their hands dirty helping others to live decent lives, then come home to try to spread awareness and convert others to their cause.

For some others, it's music, like a guy I work with who is a member of two bands, and a producer for one of those as well as one more. He is a walking encyclopedia of musical knowledge and the overhead radio that plays oldies almost always leads to a quip that makes you wonder how anyone would know it. For example, "Did you know that Parliament Funkadelic was actually two separate bands with the same members, but called different names because of disputes with different recording companies?"

For others still, it could be business research, or the economy, international relations, or political issues. Whatever the subject matter is, these concentrations often stretch beyond points of interest or hobbies. Moreso, they form the identity of a person--who they are, what they strive for, and their own personal reason for existence--their 'sense of belonging' if you will.

So for some, politics just "isn't their bag," to quote the great Austin Powers, and for those, perhaps it's best that way.

Sorry for the LATE LATE update, but things have been crazy around here the last few weeks. Thanks for the comment and we'll see you all soon!

Bi-Partisan Support?

Not so much. The ginormous stimulous package passed the House...but without a single Republican vote in favor. Not exactly bi-partisan, if you use the standard definition.

The GOP blamed house Democrats for shutting them out of discussions, not being open to debating elements, etc etc. I think there's a lot to that. Pelosi and other Congressional leaders knew they had enough votes to pass the bill. That sort of kills the instinct to negotiate. Whatever efforts the President made to get everyone together, he ran into one of the checks and balances of our government...and this time, not for the best.

The Senate, however, is another story. The Dems can't just ride rough-shod over the GOP. (Although I seriously doubt Harry Reid's ability to ride rough-shod, period...that's neither here nor there.) In the Senate, we're already seeing debate, like the one on school funding as a part of the stimulus.

I'm not worried about bi-partisan support yet, because the House version will not be the final version. Because the Senate will have to debate the issue to get it passed the bill WILL change. Then, Senate leaders will have to sit down with House leaders and hammer out yet another version. That third version will very likely be more acceptable to House Republicans, giving us a bi-partisan bill at last.

If the House Dems decide to stonewall the Senate leaders, THEN I'll be concerned.

Your Take: "I'm Just Not Political"

That's a phrase I hear a lot from one of my coworkers. It's their standard response to things like, "Who are you voting for?" or "What do you think about the new tax?" and, "Did you like the election results?"

"Oh, whatever, you know, I'm not political. You know that."

I do, and it makes me sad. I saw a lot of people I know become energized by the recent election, whether it was because they felt they had a candidate to believe in, or they felt they actually had a say, or just because they had to stop the other guy. This coworker missed that boat.

And really, that's not the only one. There's a lot of people I talk to who just don't think of the government as something that involves them. Are they right? The government is a big, unwieldy piece of machinery, and we delegate the decision making to an extreme extent. Does that mean we're at the mercy of that machine, totally helpless?

What do you think? Does being an involved citizen make a difference? Or are we all better off not being "political?"

The HarazQuack Times Family

Years ago, I was following some link-trail into the unmarked, dangerous wilds of the internet. I found an interesting little oasis of satire, sarcasm, and intelligence. The HarazQuack Times.

I've been a faithful reader ever since, because the guy manages to combine a love of sports, awareness of how screwed up the world is, and biting sarcasm into one blog. Throw in a bit of romance (or anti-romance, I suppose) and what you have is a blog that has never failed to entertain me.

Then came a spin off. One feature of the HarazQuack Times is something called the "Evil Leader's League," where people like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Omar al-Bashir square off in a tournament to see who is the most evil. Each round is decided by comparing the "evilness" of news about each player during the preceeding week (i.e, "Kim Jong-Il is discovered to have thrown away more calories after one meal than most of his country was able to scrounge this week" vs "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad continues to threaten U.S. with imaginary an nuclear weapons program." Kim Jong-Il wins).

Dark humor, but smart humor. Go check out the Evil Leader's League, about to enter it's 5th season.

I believe the author realized not everyone was able to sift through the satire and get his point, because a serious version he'd been maintaining since 2005 started to become more of a focus. The HarazQuack Times: International Affairs Edition doesn't post as often, but has all the insight and progressive flavor without the sarcasm and Nationals updates. Perhaps it is more to your taste!

I'm sure I've mentioned these blogs before (indeed, two are already in my blog roll) but I felt it was time to give a bit more appreciation. Have a great weekend kids!