Did you ever play “Fate?”

Here’s a link to a “choose your fate” youtube webesode.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlZPJChPu8Q

-dm

Ironically Miss CA’s best answer would have been “World Peace”

Miss California - Carrie Prejean

So by now everyone has heard about the Perez Hilton/Carrie Prejean scandal.  There are three issues at work here.

1. Asking the question.
2. The answer.
3. The response to the answer.

Firstly, asking this question.  Let’s say Perez Hilton asked this “what are your personal beliefs on abortion?”  I think we would all agree that question is in appropriate.  Simularly, asking if same sex marriage should be legalized in all 50 states is also a very polorizing, highly opinion based question.  If I was Miss CA, I would have smiled, waived, and said “world peace.”

Second, the answer was actually pretty good.  She said she loves that we live in a land where people can choose.  Ok, I guess people can sort of choose because they could move to one of the states that allow same sex marriage… I do agree that same sex couples really don’t have much of a right to choose right now.  I personally think that’s a shame as we live in a country that really is supposed to be free.  Please see my previous posts on same sex marriage. So granted, that part of the answer was not spot on since the freedom for same sex couples is pretty limited right now.  None the less, she at least aknowledged that there are some options.

Then, since it was an opinion question, she gave her opinion: that marriage in her opinion was between a

Some guy... blogger I think.

man and a woman.  She did even say “I don’t want to offend anyone out there.”  She did not say anything negative about homosexual people, for all we know she has many homosexual friends.  She just commented on her personal opinion regarding marriage (which is the same opinion of Barack Obama, by the way) as she was requested to do.  I don’t see any fault there.

Thirdly the response.  This is where everyone finally is beginning to see what I have been saying for years.  Perez Hilton is nuts, crude, rude, and worse for society than MTV (and that’s saying a lot).  KEEP IN MIND, MY OPINION OF PEREZ HILTON HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HIS SEXUAL ORIENTATION.  If he was straight, or asexual I would think exactly the same of him.  He’s a blog version of the worst types of tabloid magazine.  I think his site is a plague on culture in the same way celebrity magazines are, and in the same way MTV is.  His actions are not shocking to me at all, unfortunately.

I say this – for every minute that people want to spend reading tabloid blogs or magazines, remember the people who are dying of thirst in other countries and spend some time thinking about them, perhaps donating some money.  I’m telling you, these celebrities are a terrible distraction from very significant things that are happening in the world.  Real people need our help.

-dm

Equality is not hard, just provide freedom!

I’m sort of surprised the same sex marriage conversations are not evolving more quickly.  The long and short of it (to me) is this:

1. We still (sort of) live in a free country.  Government should not be denying anyone rights; we all agree on that.
2. Marriage is a sticky word – lots of religious folks want to protect it’s definition.

To me, the solution is so obvious I’m surprised we’re still talking about it.  I would love for someone to give me some real reasons with my solution explained in detail here (link) does not work for both sides.

In summary, here’s the solution: Privitise Marriage.  Get the government out of the conversation all together (State and Federal).  This would restore freedom to marriage.  This can be done a number of ways; here are two suggestions.

• Re-write the current government marriage documents and exclude the word marriage.  Write them so that they can be used in any combination.
• Remove the current marriage documents and don’t replace them with anything – get the government away from marriage.  We really should not need the government’s permission to get married.  I understand marriage is related to property but there are other, smarter ways around that.

IT WOULD WORK, RIGHT?

For the folks in favor of same sex marriage:

• Equality is achieved.
• Federal and State documents ether don’t exist, or are identical regardless if the union is same sex, or opposite sex.  The word “marriage” does not exist in government documents.
• Religious organizations have the freedom (regardless of what state they are in) to perform same sex marriages, or not perform same sex marriages thus respecting their religious freedom.
• Same sex couples can choose to get married at the places that choose to perform the ceremony.  It can be called anything in the world.  Party, marriage, celebration, union, lemon, whatever.

For the folks who do not support same sex marriage:

• Marriage is protected, and can be defined by your specific religious organization.
• Marriage is no longer a government word, and it’s name or definition will not be changed by the government.
• Religious organizations exist that do not allow same sex marriages which are an option for membership.

BUT WHAT WOULD SCHOOLS TEACH?

Because marraige would no longer be a federal or state issue, marriage would not come up in the classroom at all.  The only thing they could really teach would be the legal documents that replace the old marriage documents (if they even need to exist) but I don’t think schools would waste valuable time teaching that.  What would they teach… where to fill in the names?  As there is no lesson on W-10’s or other government forms I’m sure the new union documents would be left out of the classroom.

OK folks, so let me have it.  How does this not resolve the issue…?

-dm

I Just Wrote My Representative

…and here is what I said.

_____________________________________

Hello Honorable Edward R. Royce,

I wanted to contact you and encourage you to support H.R. 1207: Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009 by by cosponsoring the bill with Rep. Ronald Paul of Texas.

Unfortunately there is a growing distrust of government amongst American/Californian citizens.  A line is being drawn and on one side there are good politicians, and on the other side there are corrupt politicians.  I believe the road to earn trust is (naturally) through telling the truth; being honest and straightforward long enough to establish a record of trust.  Unfortunately many individuals in government are not following this path of truth.

I believe, as many of my coworkers, friends, and family do in transparency.  Unfortunately the Federal Reserve is a very secretive organization that does not share this vision of transparency.  In addition, it has become far too powerful.  Democrats and Republicans alike can respect a simple request to have the truth told to them.  That is all this bill asks.  We the people want to know the truth as it relates to the Federal Reserve.

If you are not able to cosponsor this bill, or support it in any way I would like to know why.  I do not ask that in a pestering tone.  I admit it is possible that I don’t understand exactly why the Federal Reserve is so mysterious.  If that is the case, I’d like to be educated to understand why H.R. 1207 can’t be supported.  However, since the request is simple transparency, I can’t imagine a reason to oppose it.

Thank you for your time, and service.

Will Obama Pay MY Mortgage?

This email was sent to me as a forward and I wanted to throw it out there for conversation (I did not write the email).

________________________________________

Dear President Obama,

Thank you for  helping my neighbors with their mortgage payments. You know, the ones  down the street who refinanced their house several times and bought SUV’s, ATV’s, RV’s, a pool, three HDTV’s, an X-Box, two Wave Runners,  new flooring for their home, an enlarged patio, and a Harley..

I was  wondering, since I am paying my mortgage and theirs, could you arrange for me to borrow the Harley now and then?

Richard Ford,
Queen Creek ,  AZ

P.S. They also need help with their credit  cards, when do you want me to start making those payments?

P.P.S. I almost forgot  – they didn’t file their income tax return this year. Should I go  ahead and file for them or will you be appointing them to cabinet posts?
____________________________________________

Government Programs V.S. Private Charity – what works better? (part 1)

I’m working on a blog that compares the success of government programs as compared to private charities.  I do frequently compliment the left about having their heart in the right place as far as helping the poor and disadvantaged.  However, I believe there are plenty of folks on the right that are just as compassionate – perhaps more compassionate than the folks on the left.  I emailed a friend of mine and he said something very insightful that I wanted to share.

I’m not aware of any charts like you are looking for – but I will say that that is kind of the point. The government is more likely to see it as a top-down stats driven mission because they are primarily concerned with numbers. Private charity organizations, on the other hand, care less about the numbers and more about actually helping people. So their results will tend to be less quantifiable (in my opinion).

What it comes down to is you simply cannot do charity work at the point of a gun, it’s an oxymoron. Charity means love, not force.

–Brandon

I feel this way: paying taxes is not helping the poor – at least not directly.  Before that money makes it to the poor, it first has to pass through the hands of greedy politicians and I’m sure in many cases their special interest groups.  By the time it actually gets to the poor (if it ever actually does) who knows how much is left.

Would it not make more sense to simply give money directly to the poor?  Could we create incentive for private giving with more tax breaks for charitable donations?  Would the poor not get more direct help that way?  Think beyond money – would the poor and disadvantaged not be better helped if YOU actually went down and got YOUR hands dirty?

This blog was inspired because I had a public verses private sector debate with a close friend of mine.  His goal seemed to be to make me feel as though I was selfish.  I donate on a regular basis, and am part of a non-profit organization.  I’m on mailing lists for a few others.  Some friends and I are currently raising money for a water well to be built in Africa for a village whose inhabitants do not have the basics of life – clean drinking water.  I am beginning to be annoyed by folks on the other side of the isle who don’t really participate in charity at all but feel that paying taxes excuses them from that social responsibility.

Paying taxes is not charity – let’s face it.  If hearts on the left really bleed for the poor, they should stop lining the pockets of the politicians and begin their charitable work themselves.

As I’m still researching this topic, if anyone has any statistics on this topic or articles/books I should read, please post them below.  As always, I am interested in hearing from both sides.  Thanks!

-dm

Tax Day Tea Parties – fair media coverage?

Yesterday I stopped by the Tax Day Tea Party in Santa Ana, CA to see what all was going on.  I’ m currently editing some footage I took there – check back here for that information.

According to organizer, the event reached at least 3,500 participants.  The police were standing by on horses only if the crowd exceeded that number.  In fact, the police were there – perhaps this is another indicator that the crowd was in fact that large.  However, The OC Register and the LA times are reporting estimations between 800 and 1000 participants.  Is it possible the media is trying to marginalize these events?

While there is no way for me to personally know for sure, I can estimate with utmost confidence that there were far more than 1,000 people there, not to mention the people who came late and left early.  In other words, the total number of people that came by definately exceeded the number of people that were there at any given time.

In addition to newspaper coverage, the tone of the news reports on the television seemed pretty editorial as well.  Take this one for example: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOrPzVECSjo

I’m willing to play devils advocate here – there were a few extreme types at these tea parties.  There always will be extreme folks on the right, and on the left; you can’t fairly group them in with the masses.  The overwhelming majority of folks there were good, old fashion Americans who simply want some say in how their money is being spent.  I don’t think there’s anything at all wrong with that.

-David May

Health Care – Who do you want in charge of your health… yourself… or some politicians you never met?

I came across a blog that was about a topic of endless controversy: American Health Care.  The long and short of it seems to be this:

1. Folks who want socialized health care want equal health care options for everyone (struggle for a Utopian society).
2. Folks who want privatized health care want the best health system possible for as many people as possible (short wait times, freedom to see whomever you want, etc).

To me, this boils down to the classic Churchill quote – “Show me a young Conservative and I’ll show you someone with no heart. Show me an old Liberal and I’ll show you someone with no brains.”  A Utopia (like perfection) is impossible.  People who want socialized medicine do have their heart in the right place but unfortunately their brains are not.

For me, the bottom line is this:  Only about 13% of Americans are without health care – TOPS.  Within that 13% there are people who CHOOSE not to have it, but could if they wanted to.  A friend of mine for example does not justify the $160 a month for health care, but does justify about that amount of money for their iPhone…

That means that 87% have health care.  Folks on the left think that socialized medicine is better because it will serve ‘everyone.’  They do however admit that it will be a step down from what the private sector is currently able to provide (wait times, treatments, types of medicine, etc).

In other words, the left is willing to (at least partially) destroy health care for 87% of Americans to attempt to get it for 13% of Americans – some of whom have decided not to have it in the first place (remember my old roommate).

Let’s cut it up a different way.  According to an article written by Steve Bierfeldt, after you subtract illegal aliens and people who could afford health care if they made responsible life choices, the amount of people who can’t get health care is down to 2.6%.  That means the left would want to destroy a health care system that works for 97.4% of legal Americans to try and help a 2.6% who don’t have it.

This argument boils down to responsibility.  It is irresponsible for a government to destry what works for the overwhelming majority of Americans.  The obvious answer is to find a way to help the 2.6%-13% of unisured citizens find private health care so that they can enjoy the benefits that 97.4%-87% who do have organized, working, and in fact luxurious health care.

The current proposals for reform are cloaked as big changes, but as it turns out, they are actually more of the same. They can be summed up in this way: turn more control over to the government and insurance companies while politicians and special interests jockey for credit and work behind the scenes to benefit — at the expense of individual Americans. – David McKalip, M.D.

In closing, let me put it like this.  Think of the Post Office… then FedEx Kinkos or UPS.  Now think of the DMV… then AAA.  Do you really want your health care run like the DMV or the Post office?  No thank you.

-David May
(for more information, please read this: http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=33 and this: http://www.campaignforliberty.com/article.php?view=45)

Zune is better than iPod

If you don’t believe me, view the chart here.

I had a Zune 30, a Zune 80, and my Zune 120 is coming in the mail.  Here are my top 5 reasons that the Zune is better.

Face it. Zune rocks.

Zune 120 VS iPod Classic

1. FM Radio Tuner:  The Zune makes listening to the radio possible (which means I can watch and hear TV at the gym – sorry iPod users).  Beyond that, I can purchase/download songs from the radio directly to my cart/Zune.
2. Wireless:  The WiFi built into the Zune allows for multi player games (I can play checkers/etc with another nearby Zune user; games come pre-loaded and you can download software to make your own games).  Wireless also offers streaming audio to the device (I can listen to whatever song I want whenever I want as long as I am in a WiFi zone and have a Zune pass), and wireless file share/sync to computer (I can send picture albums, podcasts, and songs/albums to a nearby Zune – I can aslo sync wirelessly with my computer).
3. Build – Screen Size and Squircle: The screen is larger for the Zune making all the difference.  In addition the navigation is easy and logical.  Up means up, down means down, etc – fancy that iPod users.
4. Zune Pass/Software: For $15 a month, you can  have unlimited downloads, unlimited streaming music on demand, and you can keep ten songs a month forever.  This works on three computers so I’m splitting it with two other people.  That means I get unlimited downloads, unlimited streaming music, and can keep 3 songs per month for about $60 a year.  Incredible.  Not only that, but the software is easy to use, and has incredible music discovery elements, and is very slick looking.
5. Microsoft makes mistakes, but Macintosh makes intentional, mean decisions and rude (in some cases outright dishonest) commercials.

Zune 120 VS 32 GB iPod Touch

1. Zune is $250 (about half of the 32 GB touch)
2. Zune has 120 GB (more than 3 times the size of the 32 GB touch)
3. FM Radio Tuner:  The Zune makes listening to the radio possible (which means I can watch and hear TV at the gym – sorry iPod users).  Beyond that, I can purchase/download songs from the radio directly to my cart/Zune.
4. Zune Pass/Software: For $15 a month, you can  have unlimited downloads, unlimited streaming music on demand, and you can keep ten songs a month forever.  This works on three computers so I’m splitting it with two other people.  That means I get unlimited downloads, unlimited streaming music, and can keep 3 songs per month for about $60 a year.  Incredible.  Not only that, but the software is easy to use, and has incredible music discovery elements, and is very slick looking.
5. Microsoft makes mistakes, but Macintosh makes intentional, mean decisions and rude (in some cases outright dishonest) commercials.

To me the choice is clear – the Zune blows the iPod out of the water.  Where am I going wrong here?

-DM

2008 DM-Blog recap

Here’s a recap of this blog in 2008.

1. Liking “There Will Be Blood” was like the fable “The Emperor’s New Suit.”
2. The phrase “Separation of Church and State” is not in the U.S. constitution.
3. I look like Donny Osmond
4. Christopher Nolan’s Joker is the greatest villain in Cinema History
5. Marriage should be (in essence) privatized.  The government (heterosexual or homosexual) will destroy marriage.  The definition of Marriage should not be determined by our government, but by individuals and religious organizations (more to come on this in 2009).
6. Celebrities do not deserve our love or money (more to come on this in 2009).
7. Lack of clean drinking water kills more people than anything else worldwide.

Keep an eye on this blog, and on these other blogs in 2009.

• www.davidmay.name
• http://debrainwashing.wordpress.com/
• http://admissioncounselors.wordpress.com/
• http://simplesacrifice.wordpress.com/