Entry: Long live Orwell!

This is one of those articles that I'm just going to let folks read for themselves. It makes me think of things like '1984' and 'V for Vendetta'. I'm in NO way saying that anyone is working toward the establishment of an orwellian society, but the fact remains that ANY administration wishing to do just that would have to take this as an initial step. It's the kind of REAL news that I wish networks would report on instead of trivial non-issues like Madonna's adopted son.

It's also interesting to mention that most people seem to forget that we are living in a union. Each state has it's own leadership, military, laws, taxes, supreme courts, and constitutions. I have no issues with a federal government per se, but it's very interesting how the federal and state governements are supposed to keep each other in check and how things would be effected if that protection were to erode.

Most interesting.

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In a telling bit of understatement, the Senator from Vermont noted that "the implications of changing the (Posse Comitatus) Act are enormous". "There is good reason," he said, "for the constructive friction in existing law when it comes to martial law declarations. Using the military for law enforcement goes against one of the founding tenets of our democracy. We fail our Constitution, neglecting the rights of the States, when we make it easier for the President to declare martial law and trample on local and state sovereignty."

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Entry: The house is back!

I just realized that there's a house that keeps re-ocurring in my dreams. It's not quite what I would classify as a mansion...but it is a REALLY big house. In my dreams, I recall that this house has a mystique about it....and aura of unrest, if you will (for lack of better words to use). Sometimes it's haunted, and sometimes it's simply uncomfortable to be in (for unknown reasons).

I remember, in the first dream in which this house appeared, that it was supposedly owned by distant relatives who had long since passed on. My mother was giving me a tour of it. I remembered thinking of what a cool house it was. The second dream was a tad more "lively". It involved zombies trying to kill me. Not exactly what I would call a nightmare, but definately one of those run-for-your-life dreams. ( The snake and shark dreams are the ones that I would classify as nightmares.) In the third dream (last night), the house was occupied by a family that was hosting a reunion. I was sneaking around the house, evading the inhabitants, in search of its mysteries (again, for lack of a better way to explain it).

These three dreams have absolutely nothing to do with one another. I do find it odd that the house is a constant though. Even the rooms are all the same! And, it's not like I've ever seen the house or anything. It's a totally randomly generated house. Now that I'm thinking about it, I'm wondering if there wasn't a fourth one. It seems to be just beyond my ability to reach it in my mind....just enough to know it's there but not to know what it was about. Weird? Of course! :)

I think that these three dreams have happened over the last 1.5 years, so it's not like I'm seeing that house every night or anything. Wouldn't it be weird to actually FIND a house that matched it by accident?! :)

[ maniacal laughter ensues ]

P.S. Hey....since when have MY posts ever been normal??? ;)

Entry: This morning

"Once upon a morning dreary, while I slacked off weak and weary,
Over many a TV show about history's forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some dude gently rapping, rapping at my house's door."

With all due respect to Mr. Edgar Allen Poe, I couldn't resist writing the above simply because I was able to see the Charleston Stage presentation of 'Nevermore' last night. It was absolutely glorious!!! It even had the screaching violin sound effects like they do in movies like 'The Exorcist'.

But, I digress. Indeed, there was a rapping on my front door this morning. I opened it to find a gentlemen dressed to the hilt (in a rather shocking electric-blue dress shirt and black tie). He said that he was delivering a "public service message" to the neighborhood.

So, at this point, I'm thinking "Oh lord....please, oh please, dear god....don't let this guy be on some politician's payrool. I have no desire to deal with that quagmire at the moment." The guy hands me a little pamphlet face-down and then proceeds to walk away (a tad more hastily than one would think).
I turned over the pamphlet only to find, to my greatest horror, that it was entitled "The End Is Near For False Religions".

I then let out a sigh and found myself thinking...."Why couldn't it have just been a politician."

So....before the gentleman had a chance to exit my property, I promptly call him back and ask him to take his pamphlet with him with the polite understanding that I wasn't interested. He thanked me for my time and wished me a good day. I wasn't trying to be rude by returning the material, but I wanted to negatively reinforce this guy's assumption that people don't mind propoganda visits at their residence.

Have you ever noticed how propoganda artists and solicitors almost ALWAYS try on the weekends? Granted...it wasn't that early in the morning, but I do recall many occasions where I'll get the 8am call from some dumb company wanting to sell me something on a Saturday morning. I mean....after getting up at 6am ever work day, why would I POSSIBLY want to sleep in on the weekends?!?!

But, again, I digress. As always, I respect this guy his right to his beliefs. I also respect his right to buy space on a billboard or a TV commercial. Is there a reason that it HAS to be a personal visitation? It's almost as if they don't want to GIVE you the chance to ignore the billboard or fast-forward your Tivo through the TV commercial. I get the distinct impression that "Our message will be delivered whether you like it or not!"

Sigh.

I wonder how large of an army their group had out there scouring the neighborhoods this morning. Who knows...they might be in YOUR neighborhood as we speak! Lock your doors and keep both eyes on your kids at all times! They're coming!!!!! BWAHAHAHAHAH!!!!

Update: I went out to check the mail the same day and found a flier attached to my door from some guy who wants to be mayor. Ugh!

Article: How to steal an election

NOTE: Please don't assume that because I posted this technical article that I am reinforcing the theory that previous elections have been unlawfully stolen. I reserve all judgement.

This is a pretty interesting article. This guy takes a look at all of the popular players in the voting machine industry and some serious weaknesses in each of their products.

The cool thing is that he didn't write the article to try and teach people to be mischievous (sp?) - he wrote it so that the world would be forced to wake up and the industry would have no choice but to add further scrutiny to its products before election time.

Picture: For all you hardcore console gamers out there...

Entry: I have made some changes

Some minor changes have been made to the blog's theme. I wonder if anyone'll notice. ;)

The content seems to be a tad lacking at the moment. Rest assured that there is more yet to be added.

P.S. If you whine...I'm going to sick my pet opossum on you.

Entry: Argg!

Yes, my children. I haven't posted for a while. Is this my way of saying that I'm giving up the blog? Heck no! It's simply my way of saying that I haven't been motivated lately. :)

I am planning on doing some overhauls to the format of this page so hang around and see what happens.

Picture: Pope Palpatine??

Wicke was kind enough to post a link to this picture. I can't HELP but add it here.

Now, I'm not a conspiracy theorist or anything but the above pictured compare-n'-contrast is just...well...hilarious! "I am Darth Benedict! Rarrr!!!" If he's ever up on the pulpit and lightening starts shooting out of his fingertips, that'd be cool!

Now, remember....I am not anti-pope (or anti-emperor, for that matter) and am not trying to besmirch his image. I just thought it was funny. :)

"On one hand, there's the pastromi on rye. The other....BLT. Oye! Decisions!"

Entry: Dating strengths and weaknesses

So, because I'm such a sucker and always jump on the bandwagon when I see a good personality-evaluation site, I decided to check out this one to see what my dating strengths and weaknesses are. Here are the results....

Dating Strengths	Dating Weaknesses
1. Financial Situation - 84.6% 2. Open-Mindedness - 63.6% 3. Independence - 57.1% 4. Sense of Humor - 57.1%	1. Shyness - 70.8% 2. Appearance - 66.7% 3. Selfishness - 54.5% 4. Insecurity - 53.8% 5. Pessimism - 50%

Dating Strengths Explained
Financial Situation - You've got your financial situation under control, which is a very desirable quality. Be careful to avoid women who are only interested in your money. Open-Mindedness - You are open to trying new things and entertaining new ideas, and this widens your pool of available women. Independence - Your strong sense of independence comes in handy while dating. You are not held back or tied down; you are free to pursue your interests. Sense of Humor - Women are attracted to people with a good sense of humor. Be sure to put yours on display!
Dating Weaknesses Explained
Shyness - You know all too well the limits shyness places on you. Putting yourself out there in social situations may be difficult, but essential to your dating success. Appearance - Devoting a greater effort at making good first impressions is a must. Try to be fit and develop a style if you want to catch a woman's attention. Selfishness - You think too much of yourself and your needs. You must learn to put your partner first and tend to her needs. Insecurity - Your insecurity makes you doubt yourself, but you must learn to love and trust yourself if you want to succeed in dating. Pessimism - Too much cynicism can be a turn-off. Try to see the brighter side of things and people will be attracted to your positive outlook.
Take the Dating Strengths and Weaknesses Quiz

Hmmm....interesting. :)

Article: Why isn't Saudization working?

Only folks who have ever had ties to the Saudi kingdom should read this. And, of those, only a handful will find it interesting. It discusses the current state of Saudization and why it's not working out quite like the Saudis thought that it would.

For those who don't know, back in the early 20th century, when Saudi was mainly tribal and the initial discoveries of oil were made, the royal family made an agreement with foreign nations that they could come in and make the major contributions to the development of their country but that a planned phase-out of expatriate employment would happen decades later to allow the state to be wholey owned and operated by Saudis and for Saudis. The primary instrument for this development was the formation of a company called the "Arabian / American Oil Company" (or "Aramco" for short). Aramco later became the greatest oil producing company in the world. In the late 80s, the Saudi govt. bought the last of the remaining publically traded stock in the company and it became a completely state-owned entity. Since then, the phase-out of foreign workers (called "Saudization") has been taking place. It has not been as successful as the Saudi government had hoped.

"Why did we fail in achieving the Saudization target? Is it because we are a spoiled nation? Is it because we don’t have the required expertise? Is it because Saudis are always waiting to assume administrative positions? Is it because we’re not used to being punctual and starting work early? Is it because we can’t do overtime like the foreigners that work in the Kingdom? Perhaps these are some of the reasons why the process of Saudization is not succeeding. Some people may think I’m exaggerating — but I wonder what the truth must be?"

My interest in this is simply because I was once a beneficiary of Aramco. That was long ago though. Since then, I just kinda keep tabs here and there.

Entry: Another Wednesday in the history of Miller

I had the fortune of seeing a blood-red moon this past weekend. It was pretty cool. I know it's just an illusion, but it's still neat to see regardless.

Other than that, the weekend was smooth and uneventful. Had a friend come over Saturday night. We talked and watched a movie. Went over to another friend's house with the intention of playing some UT2004 but was ultimately foiled since we couldnt' hear the doorbell from the game room (and since we were waiting for the pizza guy, that was a big deal). We watched another movie instead. For anyone who hasn't seen 'The Exorcism of Emily Rose', it's a pretty good flick.

The house-unpacking is coming along. I get a little more done every day. I'm going easy and taking my time since I spent 6 weeks moving all the stuff over. Sloth, unfortunately, is consistently one of my reigning virtues. :)

I haven't seen ANY good movies lately. That needs to change. Do you hear me Hollywood?! Get off your cheeks and start earning that money!!!

I need to take the initiative and get a new Betta. I will miss Rex dearly. He can never be replaced. But, unfortunately, I do need to move on.

I was helping out with the Charleston Stage people last night doing the props for the upcoming production of 'Nevermore'. That sounds like a truly awesome show and I can't wait to see it!

Ok....I know....this is a boring post. I figured I was overdue for one though. ;)

Website: Find wealthy men

So, I was driving around doing some errands on Sunday when I heard this commercial for www.wealthymen.com. This is a dating site where any woman can put up a public profile for guys to see but yet, only guys who make $100,000+ a year can post a profile.

"Wealthy Men is the one and only online personals dating site dedicated to those men seeking a higher quality online dating experience. Women who visit Wealthy Men, will find that each profile is of real men who have excelled greatly in their life, but are still seeking a partner to share their experiences with. All women can set up a free profile, however, only a select few men can join Wealthy Men as each of our members are verified by a salary approval process. This is your chance to be a part of a larger than life experience in an online personals website who make their dreams a reality. Your prince awaits."

I found this kind of interesting because I have always made a point to avoid the topic of my income on such sites. Not that I could ever be eligible to make a profile on wealthymen.com, I'm still one of those "love me for my mind" kind of people. (Which probably means that I'm poor as dirt) ;)

If anyone's wondering what the graphic for this post has to do with it, he's one of the first profiles that showed up when I clicked to browse. Seriously though...who needs THAT much muscle??? The dudes trapezius (sp?) muscles are bigger than my thights!

Give us a kiss....

Article: To veil or not to veil...

I found this interesting article over at the Arab News today. It discusses the Arab view of the requirement for the women to be veiled. Of course, that view is bound to vary wildly depending on the person whom you ask. As with any other religious point, it's all up to interpretation. I also found that I was also wrong on a couple of the points that I've argued in the past. Anyway...for any who are interested....

Entry: Yet ANOTHER manic Tuesday ;)

Hello and good morning/day/evening to all! Just got done with the Labor Day weekend. Didn't really do anything spectacular. Mostly dorked around the house. Still plenty of unpacking and organizing to get done.

I regret to inform everyone that Rex, my fearless attack Betta, died last Wednesday. <:( He has been with me for a year. I think that the stress of the move was his final undoing. He had a very rough move (much to my disappointment) and, as anyone who has owned any bettas knows, stress can actually kill these fish. So, if you would, observe a moment of silence, and wish Rex a happy and fruitful afterlife. Give 'em hell, Rex!!

As just about EVERYONE knows by now, Steve Irwin, the fearless aussie "Crocodile Hunter", was fatally attacked by a Stingray. I wish that I could say that it is a huge tragedy, but the truth of the matter is that he lived his life playing with fire (figuratively speaking, of course). There are only so many times that you can handle deadly snakes, swim with man-eating sharks, wrestle crocodiles, and befriend lions before one of them decides that they don't like you. I really did enjoy his show. The silver lining here is that he truly enjoyed his work. Everyone who knew him says that he loved life as much as he seemed to on camera. The man lived more in his 45 (was he 45??) years than most people could do in 3 lifetimes. If only everyone could be so lucky.

I have a bunch of other stuff to mention here but, for some reason, I can't remember any of it. This is what I get for waiting so long to post anything. ;)

Entry: Just another manic Tuesday

It's not really a manic Tuesday. I just had that song 'Manic Monday' (The Bangles) stuck in my head while I was thinking of a title for this entry. :)

Had the big move this last weekend. I now have furniture in my new house. Yeah! I can sleep in a bed again!! The move was relatively uneventful with the exception of the death trap that I got from UHaul. I felt like a dead man walking (err....driving) when I was behind the wheel of that thing. I had the help of some friends as well. I'd like to thank Clay (with his brand new Honda CRV), Corbette, Justin, Wicke, and Tracy. I definately appreciated their taking time out of their hard-earned weekends to help with the effort. Imagine what a heart-breaker it is to finally get your washer and dryer moved in only to find out that the plug on the end of the dryer chord doesn't match the plug in the wall due to new wiring codes. Go figure. Yet ANOTHER trip to Lowes. Man...I must REALLY love debt!

I get to spend the rest of this work week scrubbing the heck out of my apartment to get it ready to be abandoned. Fun fun fun.

Oh yeah....I hate watering my lawn. Bah!!

Article: Warcraft + IPod = Terrorist

This is an interesting albeit frightening account of how playing Warcraft and owning an Ipod can lead to terrorism. Here's another link here. Man...I really feel for this guy. I really don't know which part of this story would irk me the most if it ever happened to me.