In which the middle-aged Peacenik mouths off about War Drones--and all the other things that make him cranky.
Mr Mahatma--who is a Mr in real life--lives in the valleys of Southern California with his wife, a herd of Dears, and an impressive collection of books. Pnorny!
He is reachable at: littlemrmahatma@yahoo.com
All writings are copyrighted 2003-2008 and trademarked: Little Mr. Mahatma
In particular read the points mentioned in the Complete Program Against Clericalism. Written 70 years ago and those points are still a valid complaint. Our government refuses to enforce the precepts on which it is was founded! So much for the separation of church and state - move that statue right back into the courthouse. Moore wasn't less after all.
I can see that the combination of a religious and ignorant population combined with a Supreme Court that lacks true backbone in supporting our constitution topped off with a government corrupted by business demostrates that our country as instituted by the Founding Fathers was a nice vision but will never become reality.
Finally the 10 Commandments statue has been removed from that Alabama courthouse. And the right-wing Christian element is, for lack of a better phrase, up in arms. Their response is precisely why the statue had to go. No matter how much the preachers scream and cry on the courthouse steps, despite the presence of Bush acting as President, America is not a Christian nation.
The arguments to keep the statue in place were narrow and infantile:
"America was founded by Christians" - If the Founding Fathers wanted a Christian Nation they'd of explicitly stated such and would *NEVER* have included a Constitutional clause separating church and state. Our Founding Fathers were seeking to escape religious oppression. They knew of the totalitarian dangers when you mix religion and politics. Take a look at Afghanistan before we removed the Taliban. That is what happens when there's a dominant extremist religion in charge. You think for a moment that if the Christian Fundamentalists took over and increased prayer in school, had religious statues in the courts, and who knows what else, that the non-Christians in America would feel safe much less welcome? You think Islamic terrorists are somehow worse than the Christian Extremists who blow up abortion clinics? How long would it be before Concentration Camps and forced religious conversions re-appear?
"I don't believe that God would be happy.." (with the removal of the statue). I don't remember the exact quote but whomever said it should be hit upside the head with a 2x4. Who is this person who claims to know God so intimately? This is your opinion - meathead - and certainly no reason to keep the statue! Here's one from me - "God is ecstatic with the removal of the statue!" Prove me wrong.
"Our system of Law is based on a belief in God." Fine, which God? The Christian God, the Jewish God, the Hindu Pantheon? Even if our system of Law is based on such a belief - I'd like to see the justifications for such a statement - it doesn't mean that our government supports one religion over the rest.
We need to restore the wall separating Church and State. We need to remove "Under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance. We need to remove "In God We Trust" from our money. These two insertions were fairly recent additions and are divisive and offensive.
We have Freedom of Religion in America. That also includes Freedom FROM Religion. Our Government should focus on running the country, not on religious matters. Unfortunately, as the well organized Christian Fundamentalists increase their influence we'll see more conflicts and violence. I thought Jesus was about loving thy neighbor and turning the other cheek.
Record company executives must surely be bald by now with all their wailing and hair-pulling over music piracy. There is no argument that music piracy occurs; there is argument over how much the record companies are losing to piracy.
However. Music CDs are still overpriced. Compare them to DVDs and you get a much better deal in terms of capacity and cost-effectiveness with DVDs. DVDs are the future of media transport with higher capacities quickly looming. So should DVDs increase in cost or should CDs drop in cost?
And what about delivering music on the Internet? Apple made a big splash but already interest is dropping. They charge $1 per song which can be great if you buy a long song but seemingly a rip-off for a short song.
Here's a simple solution. Drop the price of CDs to $7 - flat out - $7. If a CD holds 70 minutes worth of music that works out to $.10/minute and that amount is what the online services should charge per song.
This way the consumer can buy just the songs they want or buy an entire CD without feeling ripped off.
And I stilll like the idea of being able to design a custom CD online, having the CD cover and song choices saved, and paying $10 total ($7 plus $3 shipping).
Governor's Ball/Monsters Ball
As the California Recall inches closer I still have ambivalent feelings towards the process. Yes, I can understand and appreciate that the process is a right granted to us voters - that if the Governor is a totally incompetent boob then the Governor should be ousted. However, this still feels like the Republicans are pulling the strings for their own benefit. Worse, this could set a precendent favoring rich folks. If they don't like the Governor and have a few million lying around, start a recall campaign. That way you don't necessarily need a majority to win. Better still, you get an idiots array of candidates to fragment the left votes. (Sure is plenty of people willing to pony up $3,500 to run.) One of the Republican's strengths is they generally work well together. Simon was the only serious threat to Ahnold and he bowed out.
(If incompetence and self-serving interests are enough to generate a recall, why don't we recall Bush? Best left unanswered for now).
But the recall will go through and for the record I will vote to not recall Davis. We knew he was a slimy piece of work when we elected him. Look at the alternative - we could have had Bill Simon. God, that thought gives me serious anal pucker. In any case, Davis was the lesser of two evils and he was handed a loaded deck what with Enron.
The $60 million for the recall could've been better spent.
So "No" for the recall. I'll still cast a vote for a replacement, but which person?
Cruz Bustamante seems the likely choice. However, one thing really bugs me about him. He's Lieutenant Governor. He should have been advising the Governor from day 1, giving sage advice. Yet we're still in this mess. If Bustamante had a better way of doing things why didn't he speak out? Didn't he discuss the issues with Davis? If he has such good solutions that he can run for Governor why didn't he do his job and present those solutions to the Governor to begin with - we'd be better off, right? EIther one mess of a lack of communication between the two and/or Davis didn't give a flying about advice and/or Bustamante sniffed the wind and decided to hold back his advice. No vote for him.
Angelyne, Gary Coleman, or Gallagher? Not a chance. The three of them should hitch up for a reality TV show about running for Governor - could be amusing and certainly no more vacuous than the other reality shows. Throw in Mary Carey for T-and A and you could have something. Hey, I know, do a remake of Ironsides with Larry Flynt as Raymond Burr...
Ahnold. No freaking way. Celebrity status aside he offers *NOTHING* of substance. He has high powered advisors but then whose interests will he serve? Gosh, this sounds REAL familiar. A leader with little political experience relying on his advisors for policy and direction. Gimme a minute. Oh yeah, Bush. Great. Just what we need. "No" to Ahnold. And looking through todays paper shows Ahnold is courting celebrities to his cause. Admittedly Ahnold is more representative of our times - bread and circuses - but still do we need another politician who can't think for himself?
Arianna Huffington. I confess - reading her columns gives me a guilty pleasure but would I vote for her? No, because simply I don't trust her. I don't trust her relationship with her wealthy ex- and motives therein. I don't trust her jumping the Republican ship to take the moral high ground in search of political power. It's easy enough to criticize, more difficult to step in and run things (which is why you won't see me on the ballot - yet). Sorry Arianna, stick to writing and being a political thorn.
Peter Ueberroth. I was surprised to see his name in the list of candidates. He entered quietly and will likely leave the same way. He could've been a contender if this were a normal election. I think of him in a Riordan mold - businessman with tight connections but then I wonder whose interests he works for. He won't get my vote.
Honestly, I don't like any of the candidates. Worse, no matter which one wins I'll be facing higher taxes and a doubtful reduction of bureaucratic idiocy. How long before California seeks salvation through invasians of Oregon, Nevada, and Arizona? Lebensraum!
Kids and Cartoons
Raising kids can be rewarding. Watching classic cartoons like Bugs Bunny (and the other great Warner Brothers charatcers), Rocky and Bullwinkle, Scooby-Doo, and others and seeing the kids enjoy them as much as I did the first time around. But you can't raise kids in the past and there is some good stuff on Saturday mornings. I'm partial to X-Men, Jackie Chan, Recess, and - *ahem* - Lizzie Maguire, and my kids will watch those. But there are two shows that they *HAVE* to watch.
One is Pokemon. No problem - it's a decent show with some subtle moments. Brock is a hormone case. Ash is clueless. Misty is growing a hot streak for Brock. Jessie, well, Jessie is da bomb! Oh yes, and Pikachu is painfully cute. I don't mind watching this show with the kids. I root for Team Rocket and my kids look at me funny but then they think Dad's a bit off anyways. We have some of the Pokemon videos and I'll even play the card game with them. I just have to remind myself not to think of Nikki Cox as Jessie. Nikki Cox...Jessie...Nikki Cox...Jessie...
The other show that they have to watch is Yu-Gi-Oh. This one gets me and I can sum it in one word - posturing. Watching two characters duel their cards on TV, I think, is supposed to be like two samurai dueling. The idea being that the samurai go out state their name and heritage, show some respect towards each other, and then duel to the death. On Yu-Gi-Oh it's like watching tow teenage boys do everything but whip out their dicks for size comparison. Come to think of it that's what they should do on the show - it'd sure shorten the duels:
Yu-Gi-Oh - "I may be small but my voice is deep and my dick is big."
Joey - "I concede!"
A typical duel usually follows this script. One duelist plays a monster - it's big, it's bad, it's powerful. The second duelist plays a bigger monster. Back and forth for a while until you get the traps kicking in.
Duelist One: "I knew you would play that Blue Eyes, Green Tail, Purple Ass Dragon and that's why I set this trap..."
Duelist Two: "Nooooooo...."
Duelist One: "That's right. Gorgon Mirror causes your dragon's offense and defense to reverse..."
Duelist Two: "Hah! I knew you'd pull something lame like that and I set *this* trap card..."
Duelist One: "Noooooo...."
Duelist Two: "You're going down. Hammer of Everlasting Strength crushes your mirror thus reverting my dragon's power to normal..."
Duelist One: "Got you! You fell right into my double-secret trap which works on alternate Tuesdays...:
Duelist Two: (shaking in fear) "It's an alternate Tuesday..."
Duelist One: "That's right and that's why you're going down. My Yellow Viagra Tequila Shooter guarantees that my dick will not only be bigger than yours but will stay up longer. You're life points are 0."
Duelist Two: (with shame) "I have a small dick."
And why the hell does Yu-Gi-Oh's voice change when he's talking versus thinking?
It looks like ZBlogger is somewhat dead. Now I'm back here. I liked the ZBlogger interface and speed. OTOH, with Google buying Blogger maybe I'll get more readers.
In any case, if you have the urge to read the ZBlogger postings here they are:
AFTER LIFE
A games newsgroup had awhile back a discussion of how theistic religions do a poor job of "proving" their deities exist or that even the deities care enough to interfere. Someone commented that the proof is irrelevent - that life is a test to determine whether one is worthy enough for an afterlife.
Bull.
Hell, heaven, afterlife...what does is matter. If there were ANY type of after life that based itself on your current life your best bet would be die as an innocent. Nothing more innocent than a baby or an unborn fetus.
Which means abortion is not bad.
If an afterlife depends on you living out a normal life and somehow making 'correct' choices - you will fail the test because life is full of "lose-lose" choices. That *IS* life - easy choices, hard choices.
If an afterlife does NOT depend on your behavior in this current life then this life is not a test.
Even simpler - why bother with life if it becomes a test for another life? Will the afterlife be a test for another life?
Will it ever end? Why is our population growing if all we're doing is reliving lives?
If the afterlife is so damn great why doesn't everyone up and kill themselves?
The answer is...
There is no afterlife.
*THIS* is it for life.
And from that we know that life is so very precious.
We know that from our reactions to holding a newborn and from recoiling from death. We crave life. We don't want death - we want eternal life. Science pursues extending life. Religion seeks clean, moral deaths.
TV THEMES
Informal poll to see if anyone actually comes here.
Email me with your votes for the 5 best TV/cartoon show themes in two categories: with words and without words.
Sure, religion provides a forum for community but so does a bowling league. When's the last time you saw a bowling league set an abortion clinic on fire or blow up a temple (or anything other than a BBQ)?
Sure, some religions promote charities but there are many charities without religious dogma attached.
Sure, America was founded by non-atheists but they recognized how quickly combining religion and politics can end up in disaster, hence the separation between church and state.
Organized Religions are a lot like corporations. They are means to to an end, ideally a monopoly of a product line, service sector, behavior of a group of people. And like corporations, religious groups are NOT entities. They can not exist without people. Point being that within these groups you have the well-off leaders/CEOs and the not-so-well-off sheep/workers.
I have to stop now. It's get too depressing thinking about how this all ties together - organized religions, politics, corporations - and how your average joe/josephine is essentially born into a life of servitude. Passover never happened!
Maybe I'm not the only one who sees organized religions as more of a threat than organized crime to damn near everything. Certainly organized religion is more pervasive, influential, and financially successful. So crime doesn't pay but being a religious fanatic just might.
ON THE OTHER HAND
Weird thoughts lately. With over 6 billion people on this planet and growing, will we run out of original ideas? My line of thought has been if that everyone copyrighted everything they did, eventually we'd run out of originality. Of course, this won't happen. It takes too long and too much money to correctly copyright something here and abroad.
But the thought of a basic unit of originality. No one is going copyright "the" or "the boy" but someone may have a fit over "the boy stood on the burning deck". Or, more obvious, look at advertising and branding. Companies have massive shits (and lawsuits) if someone uses their word or phrase.
"Share the moment..", "the joy of...","Reach out.." - common phrases are in danger of becoming lost to the marketeers and lawyers. How long before we have to watch what we say and pay when we do say it?
"Joe! How are you?"
"Not well. Problems at home with the kids. I can't communicate with them."
"Joe, I've told you before you have to think young (tm)."
"True (tm)!"
"You can't be so rigid with them. Go with it (tm). It's a beautiful thing (tm) you have with your children."
"True (tm)!"
"You need to communicate with them. Talk, they'll listen (tm). Smile (tm)."
"You're right!"
"Is it in you (tm)?"
You get the idea and all the while you're talking imagine a little corporate monkey standing there with his hand out. Every trademark, copyright, or brand infringement you pay out.
It's one way to kill freedom of speech.
07/29/2003
OCT 7 - A VOTE FOR STUPIDITY
On October 7 in California we get to hold a recall election. Our Governer Gray Davis faces the boot and deservedly so. He is a very visible figure of all that is wrong with politics - a person beholden to himself and his cronies, who is unqualified and incapable of leadership, who says all the things that sound just right but mean nothing. In other words, he is a modern politician much in the pattern of President Bush (except without Big Daddy in the background).
The scary part is that Davis truly was the lesser of two evils. Davis ran against Bill Simon who, amazingly enough, is and was an even more odious character. I desperately wanted to vote third party but I felt that if I didn't vote for Davis then Simon would win and that was terrifying. So another vote for Davis and he won.
And now the recall. This recall isn't about doing the right thing and ousting Davis. Instead it's a Republican test of power. This test will cost us California taxpayers upwards of $30 million dollars, money we don't have. But the Republicans don't care. This is a new tactic and if it works we will see more of it. The Republican have, unfortunately for the U.S., gotten wise to their power and influence. Lose an election? Big deal - mount a recall no matter what the cost and get in one of ours. Or at the very least embroil the winner in scandal and lawsuits.
And the Democrats give in. They see the power and influence and they want some too. But they won't fight for it. No, they'll line up like sheep and see if the Republicans will throw some scraps their way. Consider Bush and Iraq. Congress lined up all neat and pretty and let Bush invade. Now with the media and the public forum questioning Bush's motives and evidence for the invasion, now we hear bleatings from the Democrats. It's safe for them to speak.
The Democrats have no backbone, no cajones. The Republicans seek only the throne. Third parties - I wish but forget it. We're a one party system now. Short of a major revolution we won't see change. So say goodbye all true Americans. Your liberties and freedom are quickly becoming only cherished memories.
Now back to work. You have to make your quota of bricks without straw.
07/25/2003
SING "HEIL!" TO THE REPUBLICANS
It gets so infuriating! The calls for impeachment for Bush are slowly gaining momentum. At least one Democratic nominee is "exploring" the possibility, meaing if his poll numbers look better supporting that issue then he'll support it. And right there is a problem of our political system: no backbone for the right thing.
Clinton lied about his little dalliance and the Republicans focused on little else. Bush lied about the justifications for war and the Democrats are waiting for the poll numbers to come in. They should be hammering this issue until election day. They should force Bush to accept responsibility for his actions at the very least. And certainnly the impeachment process should be started. Bush has proven himself a great provider to his friends but a horrible President. His concept of morality and ethics is completely self-serving and skewed.
Sure, knocking Hussein out of power may have been the right thing. If Bush had said something like "We're going into Iraq to knock out Hussein and take the oil." that would have pissed people off but at least it's truthful. Instead we got this baloney about Weapons of Mass Destruction, support for Al Qaeda, and trolling for uranium - all reasons proven outright wrong.
But, as I've said previously, Bush and likely the Republicans don't really care about truth. In todays Los Angeles Times (Mon 7/21) there was a nice front page article about how the Republicans are on the verge of becoming a political majority. On the verge? Heck, they are past that point. Many of the Democrats, Lieberman for example, are closet Republicans. The corporate stink is everywhere in Washington. Halliburton et al should just add Washington D.C. to their lists of offices. The Republicans have won. Greed has won. The United States of America is no longer. It's now:
The United States of America, Inc.
In Wisconsin the Republicans are threatening Democrats from airing a commercial questioning Bush's Iraq motivations. So much for free speech if the Repubs successfully block the airing. But, hold on folks, there's going to be plenty more where that came from! The Repubs have the money and they are not afraid to use it.
Which brings me to my final thought: If Jesus were alive today, which political party would he join? I doubt it would be the Republicans.
07/21/2003
SUMMERTIME BLUES
The Summertime Blues have hit. Between the daily grind of work, taking care of house and kids, and an oppressive heat, summer reinforces the feeling of being trapped in a rut. It wasn't that long ago that summer meant a freedom - no school - but bicycling with friends along the beach, a drive somewhere just because, an all-night game session, or making horrible films.
Now there's too much to do, not enough energy to do it, and just too damn hot. It makes reading the news less tolerable, hence my heightened venom towards our janus-faced government. In Santa Monica an elderly motorist drove through a crowded street market, killing and injuring many. I should be in shock; I used to live in Santa Monica and still have many friends and relatives there, but after hearing the news I felt like "OK, next crisis." Freaking 102 degrees out. I'm tired from work. Kids are behaving like the Mongol Horde on amphetamines.
I've been to Wednesday market in Santa Monica. It's small but very nice, smack in the middle of the pedestrian mall and only two blocks from the cliffs overlooking the Pacific. That was one of my stomping grounds. Before the mall became euro-trendy, the whole area was quiet - literally. No major chain stores, except for J.C. Penney at one end, Sears at the other, and Newberry's right in the middle. Then came years of nothing: empty fronts, bums, elderly, and not quite so safe. Boom! A rebuilding, new stores, and the mall took off. It became a mini-Venice with weird entertainment, hordes of visitors, and Santa Monica (the City) turned into a Hollywood enclave ("Hello Ahnold!")
But now with the accident the image will be tarnished. The open-air market will have a fear, a bad memory hanging over it. People will look and point - There! That's where it happened. And Santa Monica - my Santa Monica - will have blood stains that just won't come off.
It's still hot out but tolerable - swim time. The kids are quiet for now. I can breathe but yet all I feel are the Summertime Blues.
TOO MUCH
After awhile it becomes too much. The commercialism which translates into Bullshitting for Bucks. Ads in the paper, on radio, on tv - with the truth ever so cleverly hidden or outright avoided. Waffle words abound. This treatment MAY get rid of your condition. Our rates ARE AMONG the lowest. Your satisfaction guaranteed or your money back (some restrictions apply).
Caveat Emptor. Let the buyer beware. You gotta be sharp, keep on your toes at all times. They're out to screw you over, separate you from your dollars. Keep your hands on your wallet. Get it in writing.
That's the life lessons for Americans and likely most of the world. Businesses will do anything to achieve their profit. As consumers we have a simple option. We can opt not to buy a product. But - darn the advertising - maybe car will get my zoomzoom zooming, maybe that shampoo will give me multiple orgasms, maybe, maybe, maybe all of my problems can be fixed through this cereal or that yogurt...
And now I feel like our government is playing the same game. "What we say is not what you'll get." You almost expect Bush to be wearing a shirt advertising for Bechtel, or Cheney displaying the Halliburton logo on his duds. Our boys sold enough lies about Iraq to the world to make their quote many times over. They'll be getting a fat bonus in their paychecks come the winter holidays. "Sure, there's Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq. We'll find them when we're damn good and ready!" "Uranium?!? Hussein was thinking about buying uranium...and that's bad!"
The problem is that we can't opt out. We can't withhold our tax dollars. We don't have a choice. We pay our taxes and the government spends it any way they want. It'd be nice to vote on where the tax dollars go. Do we need another aircraft carrier when that money could salvage darn near all the school districts in the country? Our military budget could shrink considerably if we cultivated and worked with ally nations instead of cheesing everyone off. "Bush, it's called Diplomacy."
(*sigh*)
Perhaps our government should come with a disclaimer: "Contents liable to shift."
07/17/2003
$5 BILLION SERVED
I caught an interview with Rumsfeld yesterday on TV. Would someone please get him his martini or whiskey sour. God, what a scary person and that's before he opens his mouth. Anyway. He was being questioned about Iraq (what else?) and one of the questions was about the cost. He replied that he wasn't sure but Iraq was running about $4 billion dollars per day and Afghanistan a little under a billion per day.
$5 billion dollars per day.
And bin Laden and Hussein are still alive.
$5 billion dollars per day.
And our government isn't quite sure if that's the right amount. Could be less (doubtful). Could be more. Likely it's more - a lot more.
Where's the money going to? Assume the invasion startup costs aren't included in that figure and that the $5 billion is daily costs. Assume we're talking about 100,000 troops which is way to high a number. That's still $50,000 per troop PER DAY.
So where's the money going to?
How about those open-ended contracts with Halliburton, Bechtel, et al.? Who's paying them. We are. ANd when will those contracts end? No one knows - they're open-ended.
Open-ended contracts plus $5 billion dollars per day expenditures. Some CEOs are mighty, MIGHTY happy right now.
07/10/2003
MONEY TALKS, BUSH WALKS
As Corporate America and the Republicans finalize the takeover of Government America we can only shudder at the future. How quickly will we become a one party nation? Let's face it, the Republicans by being cushy with Corporate America control the money. Control the money, you control the Government. Is it no surprise that the rich get richer and the poor poorer? Is it no surprise that the "trickle down" economy isn't trickling down but laterally? We pay our taxes and the money goes for such nice things as open-ended contracts with Halliburton. Not education - no, no, no. The populace must be kept ignorant and dependent on TV for information (because Corporate America runs the media). An ignorant population means the Armed Forces become an attractive solution for young 'uns. Strong military and strong businesses means U.S. Number 1 - Yay!!!
"Might Makes Right" - anybody still believe this not the Washington mindset?
Uranium-Thy Name Is Mud
And yet another untruth from the Bush Crowd. The news that Iraq was seeking uranium from an African nation was a forgery. But, according to Bush, it's irrelevent because Hussein still posed a threat to the world, and hence our invasion still stands as justified.
ALL of the justifications for the invasion of Iraq - ALL OF THEM - have been shown to be fabrications. No Weapons of Mass Destruction. No Uranium. Nothing. And without them Iraq posed no threat to the U.S. (much less the world). We knew it then, protested, and were labelled unpatriotic. Patriotism in the U.S. therefore means blindly following the leader without questioning motives.
Many people are wondering whether Bush knew that the data justifying his invasion was erroneous. Of course he did. But it was in his best interests - not ours - to invade. He had everything to gain and absolutely nothing to lose. Really. Iraq has been very good for Bush's business partners. The invasion helped our economy as do most war economies in the U.S. Iraq upped his popularity.
So Bush cheesed off a few allies. We got to demonstrate our military strength and that will keep them in line. Heck, if the military threat doesn't shut up France, Germany, and Russia the business angle certainly will. They had some nice Iraqi oil contracts lined up. Guess who owns them now? Pucker up Allies!
So Bush lied. Big deal. At most it will cost him the 2004 election and it will give the Republicans four years to screw over the Democrats. And, if you notice, Bush is trying to subtly change his former positions: Hussein wasn't a threat to the U.S. he was a threat to the World. Hussein didn't have Weapons of Mass Destruction, he had the potential of producing such weapons. Hussein didn't support Al Qaeda, he supported terrorism. Bush doesn't lie, he tells truths based on erroneous data.
The wordplay is simple crisis management except there's no real crisis. Bush isn't worried about what he's doing. He doesn't give a flying. His business partners have lucrative contracts. His election campaign fund probably has more money than all the Democrats combined. He has Daddy to guide him. He gets to give orders like a big person. What does it matter that our President is an incompetent, lying, corrupt boob.
Here in California the Republicans are trying to recall Governor Davis. Since we're on a wave of accountability and righteousness how about a national push to impeach Bush?
