Racist Boycotts and the First Demerit

There's no question that President Obama has changed the world. He's been progressive and outspoken and brilliant in so many ways, but I have to give him his first demerit for boycotting the U.N. conference on racism.



Of all things Obama could boycott, it would seem that racism would be near the bottom of the list. It's a bit ironic, to be truthful. However, the US government decided to back out because of the criticism of Israel. I don't condone anti-Semitism by any means, but let's be honest... Israel is being a bully. And if Hamas pushes back in any way, they're only met out by the bike rack after school with brass knuckles, a butterfly knife and the support of the school board. Establishing a Jewish state is not racist. Establishing a Jewish state by force and hurting others in the process is. Hamas is far from innocent, but you get the point.

To decide not to attend based on one or two issues is pretty disgusting. There are a lot more issues that need to be tackled in the developing world, Mr. President. I understand that some people will attend who are clearly whackjobs... *cough*Ahmadinejad*cough*... but does that mean we avoid the topic of racism completely? No.

Taxes and Somali Pirates

Doing your taxes 2 days before they are due is a really bad idea. Here's a short list as to why this is true:

1. The two and a half months of not doing your taxes will lead you to believe you're about to get a big return, when, in fact, you will only get pennies back from the government.
2. TaxAct.com will keep asking you if you have children and despite you clicking "Single," they believe you are lying or have adopted a child that maybe you've forgotten about.
3. Everyone and their mother is on TaxAct.com making the loading time between questions anywhere from 2 to 4 minutes. That loading time will make you believe that an important question is coming, but it will only be another question about your forgotten adopted child.
4. The IRS call line to retrieve your prior years' PIN is busy. Agent 02020389 doesn't want to help you anymore because you've waited too long.

So, it wasn't a terrible time, but it wasn't a walk in the park. All in all, they're done and I don't have to pay in this year. Cue the sigh of relief.

On a lighter note, those pirates got sk-doosh'd. 3 shots and 3 pirates down. I'm happy the sea captain who gave himself up to let his crew go free made it out alive. I can see this turning into a made-for-TV movie. I would call it, Somali Pirate Adventure: Hostage on the High Seas.

Cars and Splendid Things That Are Not Cars

I'm considering the purchase of a new car. I want something weird. Nothing like the stupid Pontiac Aztec though.

This is an obvious bad choice for a vehicle name, being that I've always associated the Aztec people with human sacrifice. Of course, they had their moments in arcitecture and spiritual beliefs, but when you kill to appease anything, you're doing something wrong.

Ok... moving right along. Here are my three choices for a new vehicle.

First up, the Nissan Cube. It's a bit like a mini delivery truck, but I've always liked Nissans and this one is weird enough to catch my eye. Haven't been able to test drive yet, but will soon. Aptly named, the Cube is something I'm definitely interested in driving. The rear hatch opens out. I'm confused by that, but I kind of like it. I assume it will prove futile in some parking lot situation. We shall see.

Next up is the Kia Soul. Now, I'll be honest. I don't trust Kia. It's a division of Hyundai and that's great, but when they first hit the market, they had terrible safety ratings. They've since fixed that problem, but I now wonder what they overlooked when focusing on the safety of vehicles. I drove this on Thursday in Minnetonka and got a good feel for it. Nice car. Nothing spectacular, but the hatch opens up instead of out like the Cube. That's a definite plus.

Finally, the Scion xD. This drives better than the Soul, to be sure, but my roommate just bought one and I even though I won't be living with her for much longer, I feel like if she drives one, I can't drive one. Great standard equipment on the xD makes it worth looking at, but the fact that it's a Toyota product means they can jack the price up and keep it there without too many complaints from consumers. It's in the running, but the weirdness factor on the Cube and Soul are slowly moving ahead. It's like the tortoise and the hare... except there are two tortoises and the hare is not as big a jerk as he is in the original tale.

So, weigh in, folks. What do you think?

And finally, go see Splendid Things on Monday night at the Bryant-Lake Bowl. They put on a weekly improv show that kills me. This week features special guests, The Mustache Rangers. It's gonna be killer boots. Go here.... now.

'til next time.

Why? (and Five Songs)

It's funny that it took me until high school to realize why I listen to music. It's not that I hadn't listened to music, in fact, I listened to a lot of music, but I didn't have that introspective moment where I asked "why?" until a high school friend, Greg Wachman, explained to me why he listened to Icelandic metal. It's not that it was the most beautiful music in the world... it was just that it elicited some emotion. He was steadfast in his reasoning and it made a huge impact. Here are five songs that make me extremely happy.

Gui Boratto - Beautiful Life (from the Chromophobia LP)
I downloaded this song by chance. And it was about a minute into the song when the electronic snare stops, the driving synth hushes and all is calm before the storm swells again that I realized I was just made happy by the music. Whatever thoughts were running through my head at the time were wiped away and this song took the driver's seat. A truly beautiful song.

Sigur Ros - Hoppipolla (from the Takk... LP)
I associate this song with Dublin, fair city. My roommate Aram lent me this recent purchase (at the time) and this song became the soundtrack of the best experience of my life. I remember it accompanying me on rainy morning walks to the Gaiety School of Acting and a sunny day on Inis Mor. This song will forever remind me of that trip.

Superdrag - Sucked Out (from the Regretfully Yours LP)
In respect to the current average life span, I'm young. A mere quarter century in existence. But, even though I'm aware of how lucky I am to be young and healthy, I know full well that life at 13 was awesome. I mowed lawns in the summer for cash and listened to so much music, it was ridiculous. This song was on constantly. Lovely.

The Postal Service - We Will Become Silhouettes (from the Give Up LP)
There's just something that I love about Ben Gibbard's voice and this upbeat electro-pop song about something as scary as what I assumed to be the devastation of nuclear war. The dichotomy kills me... in a good way.

The Go! Team - Get It Together (from the Thunder, Lightning, Strike LP)
Heavy melodica on this one. Distorted drums and cheerleader-type chants make this such a joy to listen to. Also, at the end of the track, a DJ breaks it down. I'm not sure why, but I also associate this with song with an improv project in which I took part and of which I have only fond memories.


'til next time.

Google News Fail and DisneyWorld

It was inevitable. I knew I would slow my blogging eventually, I just didn't know it would come to a screeching halt for almost two months. For that, I apologize.

Now... let's get started.

Please note the news stories that Google finds improtant this morning. Earthquake death toll: sad, but news. Dead soldiers returning: sad, but news. Freeze warning in Dallas: shut the f*ck up.

When I stepped outside this morning, it was 31 degrees and I wore my light spring jacket. Where's the human interest story about how I survived the "frigid" temperatures, Google? Where is it? I don't see it. You know why I don't see it, Google? Well, I'll tell you why.

It's not news.

I'm changing topics, so my blood doesn't boil. Epic fail, Google. Epic fail.

On a lighter note, I'm going to DisneyWorld! Yes, Pegatron and I are coming up on the ol' 1-year anniversary of meeting each other and the realization that life before knowing each other was not as cool. So, to celebrate, we have frequent-flyered our plane tickets and Hotwire.com'd our hotel rooms. We're set to travel and I couldn't be more excited. 2 days at Disney. 1 day at Universal. 2 days at Daytona Beach. Move over SuperBowl MVP's because it is my turn to yell, "I'm going to DisneyWorld!"

'til next time.