The Written Peace:
Open Forum of March 23, 2005
In other events around the local blog cluster, Big Brass Blog underwent some fairly major surgery, done as it was by an incompetent fool who came close to actually detroying the thing while trying to fix some minor problems it was having with different display resolutions. That's right, the Dark Wraith, himself, was trying to do some re-coding.
That was a mistake. As things turned out, it was almost a disaster for a really great blog over there.
The sad part is that I don't know, even as of right now, whether the fixes I did were solid, proper, and good in appearance.
A pox on the Information Age.
Please speak up about any topc that crosses your mind.
The Dark Wraith burns the midnight oil... or perhaps not tonight.
Published 3/24/2005 12:24:00 AM
<< 19 Comments Total
Good evening all...
Since the Terry Shrivo debacle in Congress, I've burned to write a rant about what leadership means, and what our leadership has done to lead us into the problems we see in society today, but I'm having computer problems...Went to replace a non working CD drive and next thing the monitor wouldn't run. Dead video card. Found an old card and installed it. Oh boy was it old...can you say VGA? 480x600 16 colors. Bought new card. Can't get the screen res to stay put when changed and in addition cannot install the new software because neither cd rom is now acknowleged by Windows. Anyway, my rant will wait. Gas went up to $2.05 yesterday at my station. No one expects it to come down. No one (except a little blonde 17 yr old co-worker who we think is rebelling-she worships Mr. Bush) blames anyone but Bush and Big Oil.
I am trying to find a used goat cart to use for transportation, but my pet goat is still a trifle young for hauling. He also must have joined with Mr. Goat here and raided the Spam cache, since he seems to be in some tummy distress this evening.
Forgot to add....
You haven't lived until forced to surf the blogs with a screen res of 480x600 and all the colors off, you really haven't...
Your Blogger comment screen is coming up with all the speed of a Galapagos tortoise on barbiturates, but now that I'm here, I'll report that your work on Big Brass Blog has made it wholly readable for me (Dell computer, Windows IE, Windows XP). The last rework allowed me to read the postings, but the links to other blogs were still like something out of a Netscape Navigator nightmare. Your lastest work appears to have corrected that.
On a separate topic, have you heard about this? Former Dem. Sen. Breaux muddies the fed. tax waters at the behest of Shrub.
(ps: This ain't your garden variety, annual, fed. tax water muddying!)
- oddjob
Good morning, OddJob.
Your assurance that Big Brass Blog is now visually more functional is music to my ears... or candy to my eyes, since I didn't actually hear you.
Thank you for that link. About the only folks howling for a consumption tax are the neo-cons and that creeping-dementia poster boy, Greenspan. Breaux is using them to make ridiculous claims like "There is no consensus among tax experts, politicians, or taxpayers on how to define fairness" as a launching point for this latest neo-con fantasy-just-waiting-to-become-another-debacle. The comment from that one expert about how a consumption tax could become a "wage tax" is an understatement: a consumption tax is a "wage tax," and that's what the neo-conservatives have been dreaming about for years. As I've pointed out before, they envision a tax structure that taxes income from labor but not income from capital. Changes to the Internal Revenue Code over the past several years have already been enacted pursuant to that shift in the fundamental means by which the federal government raises revenue.
Worse still is that, as the United States has handed more and more fiscal burdens to states—which have, themselves, shifted fiscal burden to counties, municipalities, townships, and school districts—sales taxes have already become a significant distortion in the balance between taxation of labor and capital. This is even more pronounced because of the long-standing policy in many states and cities to grant tax abatement favors to companies that locate within their jurisdictions.
Breaux is playing games. He and his buddies already know what they're going to do. This tax commission is just for show. It's a pity he thinks people are too stupid to see that.
The Dark Wraith just snorts.
Thank you, Wild Clover, for allowing me to train the youngster in Spam raiding (everyone needs a succession plan). Although I warned him of excesses, I must apologize for his condition. I was distracted by Grandma Wraith's three new cases of Oven Roasted Turkey Spam, and had forgotten how quickly teens can snarf a meal. Let's hope his tummy condition passes.
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Those that are intently following the Social Security issue may find the link below to be of interest. It is a transcript of chat session with an economics professor. I haven't actually finished reading it yet, but the questions and answers are quite broad and informative.
What would changes in Social Security mean to you?
Dark Wraith, did you notice how I didn't make any wise cracks about whether economics professor is a form of an oxymoron?
Cute, Mr. Goat.
Real cute.
The Dark Wraith feels the nipping at his heals.
Good Day Dark Wraith
First order of business....
I would like to thank you for referring to me as "Paradigm Shifter". I have now changed my name and profile to reflect as such. I think you were the first to refer to me as "paradigm shifter" (As opposed to revolution by shifting paradigms) and I try to always give credit where credit is due.
Second order of business:
I am begining to wonder if Terri Shiavo is worth more to the RNC dead than alive.
Don't Cheney and Scalia go hunting together? Why would the supreme court not agree to hear the case? Would the Bush administration and the RNC want the Supreme Court to over turn the decision to remove Terri's feeding tube?
In my opinion no....and here is why from a purely political standpoint.
With Terri Dead the RNC can claim "judicial activism" even louder and provide more mommentum for appointing more conservative judges.
With Terris dead, in 2006 the election battle cries are going to have a more poigniant ring to them as the RNC cries out how "We Tried to Save Terri, but those Liberals and activist judges had to kill her!"
At this point I think their move is cold and calculated. A dead Terri is really going to energize their base come 2006 more so than a live Terris would. Just my thoughts.
Paradigm Shifter
Good Day Dark Wraith
First order of business....
I would like to thank you for referring to me as "Paradigm Shifter". I have now changed my name and profile to reflect as such. I think you were the first to refer to me as "paradigm shifter" (As opposed to revolution by shifting paradigms) and I try to always give credit where credit is due.
Second order of business:
I am begining to wonder if Terri Shiavo is worth more to the RNC dead than alive.
Don't Cheney and Scalia go hunting together? Why would the supreme court not agree to hear the case? Would the Bush administration and the RNC want the Supreme Court to over turn the decision to remove Terri's feeding tube?
In my opinion no....and here is why from a purely political standpoint.
With Terri Dead the RNC can claim "judicial activism" even louder and provide more mommentum for appointing more conservative judges.
With Terris dead, in 2006 the election battle cries are going to have a more poigniant ring to them as the RNC cries out how "We Tried to Save Terri, but those Liberals and activist judges had to kill her!"
At this point I think their move is cold and calculated. A dead Terri is really going to energize their base come 2006 more so than a live Terris would. Just my thoughts.
Paradigm Shifter
Good afternoon, Paradigm Shifter.
I agree with you. I don't know how old you are or how much you're into historical references, but the old term for using the tragedy of death to political advantage is "waving (or raising) the bloody shirt." The reference was originally intended for those who use the deaths of war or its predicates as a call to more war, but the term applies well to those who will no doubt use Terry Schiavo's death to consolidate their standing among the anti-abortionists.
Excellent that you note the political gamesmanship that will arise from an awful situation such as we have occurring now.
The Dark Wraith welcomes Paradigm Shifter to the ranks of commenters on The Dark Wraith Forums.
Thank you for welcoming me Dark Wraith. I am 32 and have heard of the "Waiving the Bloody Shirt" reference before.....somewhere back in a history class I took....
Oh to be a fly on the wall while Carl Rove, Cheney, Bush, Scalia, and other NeoCons discuss political strategy.
I must go shift some paradigms now.
Good stuff from The Economist (re: foreign policy, not economics).
- oddjob
Well I felt my philosophical side come out this evening... So I'm going to post a nice easter reflection that came to me a few minutes ago about life and change.
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Opening to the fullness of life is especially important during this Easter season time of death and rebirth. When we open to possibilities in our lives, we open to our own personal rebirth. A time to step back and get rid of the old habits that are holding us back and embrace the new attitudes and choices that will define our new way of being in the world. It is a time to be bold to and not stand meekly against the dawning of the new day. Life has our name is not taking no for an answer. How will we answer? How will we answer, will we embrace and accept the dawn of the new day or will we want to crawl back under the covers to hide from the inevitable. Life rarely takes No for an answer. When we do life returns with a situation twice as bizarre and nearly twice as compelling. That is why it’s open best to say Yes the first time and jump into the fire. Because you never know what will be forged in the fire and how changed you will walk out the other end.
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-Gary A
Thank you, Gary.
As I believe you will complete your seminary work and enter the ministry—should that be your choice of careers—I hope you will consider providing a small bit of sermon for this blog every now and then. Nothing that would take up a lot of your time: just a few lines that could be offered as an inset or a link.
The Dark Wraith thinks that would be nice.
DW, I will always be up for posting some of my reflections here. As for the degree's I'm looking attaking a more academic track to an advanced degree in spirituality and mysticism.
Also I know that I will end up doing some kind of ministry because it kind of gets into your blood after a while especially in the Unitarian church. :)
As I move forward to my next adventure I will keep the Dark Wraith Forums in my head. :)
-Gary A
Light reading for a Friday:
Rural MA canine scourge saved from the knife.
- oddjob
Well, OddJob, that's a nice story for a Friday afternoon.
So, there is actually such a thing as a "holistic dog trainer"? I'm a bit suspicious of that: it sounds too much like Zen Pet Management, but now I'm going to have to see if it really works. If you happen to catch the outcome, please put the link up, here. Supposedly, the selectmen have given the dog a month to get this new trick right.
We'll just have to see.
The Dark Wraith listens for the sound of the (quietly) barking dog.
I checked on Mapquest and Clinton isn't really all that far from the furthest edge of the Boston suburbs, where the beautiful people live (eg., Acton & Concord). Once I saw that I kinda wasn't surprised, if you know what I mean....
- oddjob
Ah, to be well off and suffer the indignities that modern life hurls in the path of life.
Well, that explains why the neighbors didn't just take the dog and use it at the weekend backyard barbeque.
The rich and the poor have such different problem resolution strategies.
The Dark Wraith grabs the charcoal briquettes.
The Mendacious contemplate sweetening the bait in the trap.
- oddjob