I've been cursed since Dan Brown...

Knowing that the IQ of the general population is not too high, I usually try to steer clear of anything that's trendy. Why? Because chances are if the masses like it, it's probably pretty lame.

But I'm weak.

Sometimes, when something has staying power I break down and check it out. More times than not I realize I should have left well enough alone. (Blair Witch Project, I'm talking to you. And you too Dan Brown.) However, there have been times that I was like 'whoa, people actually have pretty decent taste for a change." For instance, I fought off Harry Potter until it was assigned to me in a college literature class. Glad that happened. I initially thought that the Dixie Chicks were talentless hacks and succumbed to temptation by the 3rd album. Not only are they uber talented but have proven to be so right on target politically.

Well, after repeatedly being told how David Sedaris is all the rage and how is writing is so wonderful I picked up one of his books off a sale table. "Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim" is what I ended up with. I've read about half of it so far and my only thought is - THIS is what people consider wonderful writing? Oy vey. Maybe, just maybe this is one of his lesser works. I hopped over to Amazon to see the reviews and find out...282 reviews and it 4/5 stars. Dammit, this is supposed to be a good one.

The new AT&T - still sucking

It seems you can't go anywhere without seeing/hearing an advertisement for "The new AT&T" since their recent take-over of Bellsouth and Cingular. Unfortunately for me, I am about to move and had to deal with the "new AT&T" to setup new phone service. On Jan 29th I filled out the online order form for new service, which was set to begin today. At 10am today I get an email telling me that they cannot complete my request and to call 1-800-244-4444 to resolve the problem. I promptly get on the phone...a phone call that results in me getting transferred 5 times for a total call lenght of just over an hour, with half the CSRs being able to see my account but having no clue why there is a problem and the other half telling me that the account does not exist. Ah, incompetence at it's finest. The call ended with the Midwest web order department telling me that there was no record of my account or order (even though previous people had been able to pull it up with my confirmation number), then the lovely (insert sarcasm here) lady told me that she could walk me through the web order form step-by-step. Apparently their incomptence was a direct result of me being internet illiterate...who knew?!? I asked her what good that would do if the order did not show up in their system the first time even though I was issued a confirmation number. Oy.

 

So, for anyone else having this problem with 'the new AT&T', here's some other phone numbers I have accumlated from my session today.

Midwest web order department 1-800-869-1598

Texas web order department 1-866-602-4412

Installation department 1-800-341-9311

Business office 1-800-288-2020

Order department 1-800-299-3810

 

Luckily I can get phone service through the cable provider or through a third-party like Vonage. Unfortunately, I have dealt with Vonage in the past and they are just as incompetent (if not more so). Damn the phone company monopolies.

 

Love has no leaders, and our leaders have no love.

The thought process of some people consistently perplexes and astounds me. Yesterday I read the following message in an online group that I subscribe to for foreign language exchange:

"To start with, I'm against homosexuality. You can guess then that I'm against homosexual marriages and -of course- I'm against any law that aproves children adoptions by these couples. Poor children... they would grow with a twisted idea of what a family should be."

The above message was in response to someone's suggestion that the group discuss off-topic items to make the group less boring. In response to the above message, s omeone mentioned that choice was up to the individual. As a result the same person as above replied:

"...I agree with you that everybody is free to decide what to do with their life. I respect people's choice, but that doesn't mean I aprove it. That's what I call tolerance. However, when it comes to adoption, a third person is involved: a child. This child cannot decide if he wants to be raised by an homosexual couple. He's not able to decide anything at all. So, the goverment must choose what it's best for him. I think homosexuality goes against nature... a child is bring to this world only through the union of an egg (women) and a sperm (men). Even in labs, they need these two components. What does this tell you? A family should be formed by a dad, a mum, and their kids. That's what God established."

Of course, what this person is ignorant of is parthenogenesis, which of course is the scientific terminology for the occurrence of two females producing offspring without the assistance of any males (and it should be noted that this DOES occur naturally in some species). A recent news article from December 2006 even points to a pair of female Komodo dragons that have produced offspring without sperm. Astonishingly, parthenogeneis is not a new thing. A July 2001 article shows that Australian scientists found a way to fertilize an egg without the need for sperm. However, due to women clearly lacking the genetic makeup of males, only girls can be born. And in a 2004 article, Japanese scientists were reported to have been successful at creating baby mice without any sperm. Granted, it took them over 400 times to get it right, but clearly it can be done.

All scientific facts aside, I have to wonder what people, such as the person whose comments I have posted above, have against love. The person stated that they were against children being adopted by homosexual couples because "they would grow with a twisted idea of what a family should be." To which my first thought is, 'yes, because possibly living to adulthood in an orphanage is much better than having two loving dads/moms.' People that bring God into the argument are always of the position that love/family and homosexual relationships are mutually exclusive. In reality they are no more mutually exclusive than heterosexual relationships. I often wonder with people of this thought persuasion what exactly their obsession is with homosexuality. These people expend so much energy spouting off about how <<insert choice inflammatory language here>> homosexuality is that I suspect they spend more time thinking on all things gay than gay people themselves do! Yet, because they think that love/family and homosexual relationships are mutually exclusive they would rather leave children with no family than have them in what they fail to see as a family in 2 men or 2 women. I challenge them to walk into any orphange and ask any child there if they would rather remain at the orphange (possibily through adulthood) or leave with a homosexual couple that wanted to adopt them. I suspect they would not like the answer they would receive.

I just don't understand women like this

Overheard from another cubicle at work:

Woman #1: I can't believe she's running for President.

Woman #2: I know, I don't get it.

Woman #1: Yeh, I mean, I like her, but...

Woman #2: We should talk to David, he'll understand.

Woman #1: I just don't want a woman for President.

Say what? How can a woman basically say that a woman is not worthy of being in power?

Finally...a trailer for the movie

She's in!

She's in!

She's in!

She's in!

real-life Tarzan

I happened upon the most interesting story in The Guardian here.

Apparently a 27 y.o. woman was found in the jungle and people think she is a girl that disappeared when she was 8 years old. Seems she was walking around like an ape and refuses to wear clothes now, craziness.

NYC - Bohemia no more

A few years ago I lived in a dumpy little studio on 27th & 6th in NYC for the low-low price of $1350 a month. Now the average rent in that area is well over $2000 and the corners are littered with luxury highrises. How un-New York! My corner used to be filled with trannies! Nothing is as depressing as strolling through Chelsea and seeing one highrise condo building after another. A parking lot that doubled as a junk fair location on weekends is now being primed for yet another beacon of the decline of New York.

I used to walk by Avalon each day on my way to work. According to an article in the Guardian, Avalon is set to be turned into a mini-mall. New York - is nothing sacred anymore? you're losing your charm, love.

Massachusetts to gay couples: "Just kidding"

Apparently some Massachusetts lawmakers have decided that it's okay to take back civil rights, specifically the right for gay couples to marry in Massachusetts. An appalling 62 state legislators voted to advance a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Massachusetts. Where's the outrage? Where's the brave wannabe presidential candidate denouncing this atrocity? Anyone? Someone please, ferchrissakes. Where is Al Sharpton and his eager-to-march-for-justice legs? Where are the couples of the approximate 8,500 gay marriages that were performed in Massachusetts? That little certificate doesn't symbolize a thing if they're not willing to stand up for it!

Frankly, I don't understand this anti-gay obsession. And I'm surprised that the almighty dollar hasn't knocked these Republicans off of their moral high-horse. I don't know the cost of a marriage license, but for arguments sake let's put a price of $100 on it. That's $850,000 that Massachusetts made. This doesn't take into account the money made by florists, caterers, reception halls, etc. And of course the state and the government taxes all of these business on the money they made from gay marriages. That's not pocket change. And here I thought Republicans liked money more than Jesus.

So, what's next? Taking away the right of women to vote?

Toyota knows if you've been drinking

Toyota seems to think it's a good idea to make car that can detect a high blood alcohol level in the driver. According to the article, this is how it will work:

**if sweat sensors in the driving wheel detect high levels of alcohol in the driver's bloodstream, the car won't start

**if the sensors detect abnormal steering, the car is slowed to a halt

**if a special camera shows that the driver's pupils are not in focus, the car will come to a halt

This is a bit worrisome because the next thing you know, Toyota will send info to the police that you are driving drunk. I'm also concerned about the whole 'car slowed to a halt' thing. What if you're on a busy freeway? Do the hazard lights come on to alert other drivers? Or are you on your own and have to hope that no one crashes into your halted car? And what about the 'special camera' that studies the drivers pupils....when I go to the eye doctor they dilate my eyes, does that mean my car would slow to a halt because of this? And is the feed from this 'special camera' stored anywhere?

How to end poverty

The CEO of Goldman Sachs just got a $53.4 million bonus, on top of his $600,000 annual salary.
Was he having trouble living on the 600K?

That $53.4 million would have been better spent on fighting poverty and AIDS with the ONE campaign.

Or how about this...my father builds houses. He says he can build a 2-story, 3-4 bedroom home with a full-size basement for around $100,000. Think of how many families could be housed in the homes made possible by $53.4 million.

Big business - still doing whatever the hell they want and getting away with it

I came across this shocking tidbit of info on trademark infringement on Chilling Effects.

There is another type of infringement, too, called trademark dilution. Under this doctrine, the owner of a famous mark is entitled to stop you from commercial use of a mark or trade name, if that use begins after the famous mark has become famous and harms its distinctive quality. Walt Disney has used this concept to stop pornographers from using Snow White or Sleeping Beauty in their films. Fan fiction authors who distribute their work commercially may be accused of trademark dilution in addition to other intellectual property violations.

Uh, wait a minute. A large corporation can just up and trademark something in public domain under the guise that they are the one that made it famous? Riiiiight.

Product placement - at home? wtf?

Possibly the dumbest celebrity quote ever. I mean, is she on AMEX payroll or something?

"I don't leave home without him. Just like a new American Express card."
- Mariska Hargitay, on her son, August.

Bush not losing any sleep

People asked Bush if he takes sleep aids. He says no.

“I must tell you, I'm sleeping a lot better than people would assume,” he said.

Well, that's refreshing to know that he isn't losing any sleep over the state of the current US economy, the lives being lost in Iraq, etc.

He also thinks Mary Cheney will be a loving sould to her child. wtf?

Not to be outdone by her crackhead husband, Laura thinks single women can't have big fancy-pants jobs. Insanity!

more insanity here!

Schadenfreude

1. Judith Regan, who must have some sort of chemical imbalance for publishing that hideous OJ Simpson book, was just fired from her cushy job.
2. My department has over $800,000 to capitalize by March 31, 2007 and one of my co-workers quit today, Travis the Hobbit left earlier for a job interview (his 3rd in the past 2 weeks) and I plan on fleeing mid-January. muah haha
3. Nissan had a special employee car salon a couple of weeks ago and unveiled their newest model to some of us, the Nissan Rogue, which is a hideous looking beast of a vehicle. It's a cross between the Murano and the Versa - but all the ugly parts of those cars. The Nissan Rogue didn't just get hit by the ugly truck, it IS the ugly truck!

Jersey beat NYC in doing this? say it's not so!

Kudos to New Jersey governor John Corzine for his willingness to sign into law a civil unions bill passed last week by New Jersey's state legislature.

This makes New Jersey the third state, after Vermont and Connecticut, to offer civil unions, which extend to gay men and lesbians all the rights state law affords married people. Unfortunately, the bill does not recognize gay marriage.

Jersey - maybe it's not so bad after all!

Massachusetts gov. does not heart immigrants, well at least the illegal one

This is rich.

The skeevy prez-wannabe governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney, signed an agreement (probably in blood) with the feds to allow state police to question and detain suspected illegal immigrants. I'll take racial profiling for $100.

Story here.

Essentially, it's nutritional pornography. It's so bad for you it's shocking

Americans are suckers for themes. From themeparks to different themed rooms in houses to themed restaurants.





This Heart Attack Grill in Arizona is actually kind of funny. I mean, look at the faces of these guys, they look like they're having a good time. Could be due to the 'naughty nurses' serving up their greasy burgers.

Christmas comes early!

December 17th as a matter of fact.

Rumsfeld's last day as Secretary of Defense. Hooray!

Is this a joke?

WASHINGTON - Faced with a decline in the number of overseas visitors and unpopular entry requirements, the U.S. government is turning to the Walt Disney Co. and other theme park operators to brighten the country’s battered image.

With security much tightened since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the visa and entry processes are so unpopular that the country was ranked as the world’s most unfriendly to visitors in a survey last month of travelers from 16 nations.

Rest of story here.