USA! USA! USA!

Been a while since I've written anything, but coming to work now for the 4th day in a row listening to radio call-in backwoods idiots, I thought I'd drop in for a few words...

So the local country station (yes, I listen almost exclusively to country radio, except in the other car where I have Sirius and LOVE satellite radio) had been playing some new Dixie Chicks song, and then taking callers to state their case to either continue playing the song, or removing it from the air. As you can probably suspect from the press about the Dixie Chicks over the past couple of years, 90% of the calls were from Backwoods Billy Bob saying "Get that crap off the air! Those ungreatful bitches are UNPATRIOTIC! I don't stand for no AMERICANS that don't like AMERICA! They oughta take their commie asses over to France if they don't like it here! Hoo ahh! GO AMERICA!"

I would go into some disertation of how it is, in fact, OUR DUTY to challenge the choices and decisions made by our government; but I think someone has summed it up pretty well for me, so I'll just let you read his words...

Paul Phillips answering reader email in his blog:

From: Some Guy
To: paulp
Subject: question

Paul, you've made it clear that you are ashamed of
America.  Why don't you move to France and keep Johnny
Depp company?  You surely can afford to do so.  It
seems puzzling to me that a millionaire who hates
America still chooses to live here.

This email captures a particular stupidity that I can't quite understand: this idea that it's unpatriotic to criticize your government. THIS country, unlike most others, was founded by people who understood that government is merely a tool, not a god to whom we pledge unthinking allegiance, and it is a tool useful only for a very limited set of tasks. When your government is vastly overreaching its proper role, who is the patriot: the man who speaks his mind, or the man who says "love it or leave it, you pinko commie!"

This isn't a sports team you're rooting for, some guy. I don't feel any obligation to wave a giant foam finger when my government is blowing it. That you do makes you much worse than useless.

I listened to bruce sterling's speech from sxsw and he talked a lot about what it's like as an american living in serbia. He said, memorably, it's like watching the last reels of "gone with the wind" over here. And I know just what he means. He also said "the shame is almost too much to bear", and I know what he means about that too. But if I do have to leave the US it's going to be with enormous regret, because this country was founded on ideals that I believe in and for a time our government was the best the world had. That day is done. I have lost the ability to root for the home team because I do not believe our present government represents those ideals in any meaningful way, and I think we are likely headed for a disaster of our own making.

Maybe I will move to france and get a duplex with johnny depp, or more likely I'll stick it out here and continue to be critical of the government when I feel it is warranted. Either way, I'm a citizen and a patriot, and you're just some dumb schmuck who listens to too much right-wing radio and who can't tell the difference between your country and your government of the moment.

Sincerely, paulp

If you're interested in following one of the best blogs on the internet, Paul's Livejournal can be found here.

Matt Savoie - Olympic Figure Skater - Peoria, IL!

I don't know if anyone's been following the men's figure skating at the Olympics, but Matt Savoie is over there competing. He has been trained since I remember him way back in the day at Owen's Center in my home town of Peoria, IL, and his life-long trainer is Linda Branan who was someone I knew very well. Linda trained several kids at Owens, where I worked my first job. I was a public skate guard, taught hockey lessons to 8-10 year olds, and drove the Zamboni. :-)

Linda was married to Larry, who was an employer of mine my senior year in high school and into my first years of college. He was a big boysterous car-salesman-like guy who owned ABS Air Systems, a company that manufactured and installed downdraft car paint stations. I used to do all their drafting and layout drawings in AutoCad. Larry and Linda were wonderful people who I have fond memories of and who always took me in as one of their own.

I remember Matt pretty well. He was a smiley kid and a standout at Owens when he was like 12-13 years old. He was friendly as could be and always used to ask me about hockey because he thought about getting into it at one time and quitting figure skating. Looks like he made the right choice... :-)

Here's his bio on NBC Sports...

http://www.nbcolympics.com/athletes/5087468/detail.html?ib_oll=Headline

That first picture really hits home with me as Linda was always laughing and smiling.

Very cool!

Idaho Blows!

As a long time follower of The Best Page In The Universe, I found this essay pretty amusing. Especially since I just moved to Idaho.

Idaho Blows!

Digg it!

One of my new favorite sites...

DIGG.com

Technology news for geeks by geeks.

Me, I want a hoooo-lah-hoooop!

Christmas has always been an interesting time of year for me. It's long been more about enjoying family and friends while stuffing our faces and tearing into cheerfully wrapped boxes; with a little poker thrown in for good measure; than it has been about celebrating the birth of its' namesake.

One of the only blogs that I read on a regular basis is that of Paul Phillips. Not because of his poker celebrity, although that's what led me to his online journal; but because of his writing style, wisdom and general views of life. His entry for this past holiday is certainly worth a read, no matter what side of the fence you're on.

Paul Phillips' LiveJournal entry for Dec 26th

If nothing in the post or linked essays strikes a chord, there are interesting views and counter-views in the thread of comments. I'm always amazed by the logic vs. faith argument...

On My Life & Marriage...

<begin sappy wedding-and-life-reflection post>

So here I am. All married up (again) and simply couldn’t be happier in my own skin. Some may know that I’ve been across the threshold before, some may not. One absolute certainty is that this time things feel different. My life feels different. Waking up in the morning and going to bed at night is different than it ever has been during any “phase” of my life. It’s comfortable and enjoyable. I find myself smiling about the little things and I feel myself warming with mere thoughts of my wife Michelle.

Michelle and I have been together just shy of two years. In that time we have tried our relationship to the fullest. It’s been bent, flexed, twisted, mangled, warped, challenged and every other action you can come up with. It really is amazing to me sometimes everything we’ve been through in our time together. Yet the most amazing part is that through it all, we managed to grow the relationship to what it is today; so completely unlikely and difficult, but yet so right and obvious. I’ve never doubted my relationship with Michelle, not once. The only time I’ve ever felt it slipping I was physically ill at the mere thought of us parting ways. That sickness led me to do something I’ve rarely done in the past, that being to look inward instead of at the situation outside of me. See, I’m very good at seeing a situation, analyzing it, understanding the problems with it, and setting in motion a plan to fix it; though, as I've learned, that’s not always the answer in a human relationship.

I have a confession. I must admit that this relationship, as it exists today, would not be possible without some serious maturation on my part. This isn’t a pat on the back by any stretch, but rather an admission that for 29 years I’ve avoided the hard stuff any time it had to do with Daniel Scott Hoerr. I’ve been content to believe that I had a lot of shit figured out that I really didn’t have a clue about. It wasn’t until this relationship that I’ve realized I have a lot to learn about myself. It wasn’t until this relationship that I realized that even those of us who have a gift for human interaction and behavior often can’t crack the surface of our own “wall” in life. Clichéd, I know, but it is a monumental unearthing in my life and I feel as though it gives me new opportunity for growth, both the growth of my own person, and the growth of my understanding of those around me.

One of my mantras in life has always been that of flexibility. We all must have a certain amount of flexibility in our lives to maintain our sanity. Too much flexibility and we become complacent boorish individuals, too little and we become wound tighter than a banjo string, ready to snap at any experience that doesn’t go precisely as initially envisioned. What I’ve realized that I missed in my application of flexibility was the understanding that everyone must apply it differently. “Can’t we all just get along” means many different things to many different people and personalities. The destination of the phrase is ultimately identical; however, there are endless ways to arrive at that destination. I believe I missed that very important point in years past. It wasn’t until I spent the last twoish years with Michelle that I’ve been awoken to the understanding of this concept.

“So, how does it feel to be married?” hehe – The most absurd question in the world to ask a newlywed, although it’s very commonly the most frequent. Shouldn’t we instead somehow verbalize the celebration of the obvious growth it takes to get to the point of matrimony? “Congratulations” always precedes the question above, but I wonder of the intent of the congratulations. I wonder if people consider the challenges a couple has gone through to bring them to where they take the plunge. I wonder if my views of marriage are so warped from my own inadequacies of the past that any normal human being just answered “YES!” to all those questions!

Michelle and I were married on December 3rd, 2005; today feels no different than December 2nd in the context of the question posed by the masses. However, I do have a constant reminder that I’ve achieved something in my life in the form of a ring. I’ve achieved the opportunity to give my heart to someone so special and so deserving of love through both of our dedication to understanding one another. I’ve achieved the understanding that my views and analysis of situations can often be wrong, and someone else’s views be right.

I have a lot more to learn in life and I’m excited to learn alongside Michelle Isabelle Hoerr. She’s shown me something of myself that I would have never seen alone, she’s my best friend, my biggest fan, my toughest critic; and most of all, my soul mate.

</end sappy wedding-and-life-reflection post>

Thank you NPR!

This is one of the most profound discoveries I've made on the web. NPR has always been a staple in my aural diet, and I've always felt grateful of their contributions to society. This project is the nail in the coffin.

This, I Believe.

YOU WILL RESPECT MY AUTHORITAAAAY!

Elliott, you're such a pimp!