Babeled

July 1, 1776 - the inevitable birth of nation draws near.  Hours of debate ensued on what was a balmy Monday in Philadelphia.  The feverish mood set upon Congress was somber yet the issue was clear; the potential ratification of Richard Henry Lee’s motion to dissolve all allegiance with Great Britain and declare absolute independence from the Crown.  The motion, originally raised a month prior, and seconded by the colossus John Adams had finally run its course.  As a matter of historical fact, on this day the decision was already in effect made.  Nine states were in favor, versus two against (Delaware and South Carolina), with two other colonies abstaining (Pennsylvania and New York).

As it stood there was enough support to carry the vote and initiate the break, however with the wisdom and leadership of John Adams, Congress agreed that a unanimous decision was needed in order to show necessary strength and unity amongst the precocious colonies.  It was certain on this night, that more debate and backroom dealings were needed.

And so it began, the delegates met throughout the night, outside the walls of Congress to reach a working agreement for the final vote that would take place on July 2, 1776.  South Carolina agreed to switch their vote to the positive if Delaware would do the same - the problem here was that two of the three Delaware delegates were at an impasse.  John Dickenson of Pennsylvania (a devout Quaker), who was the most ardent opponent of independence maintained his penchant for peace with England.  Instead of allowing his ideals to be compromised with a public switch before the record, he agreed to not attended the vote thus allowing Pennsylvania to vote in favor of Lee’s motion.  Finally the New York delegation, who had yet to receive orders for separation from their constituents, pledged to be the one abstaining vote.

So, on July 2, 1776 it officially came to pass when in heroic fashion the ailing Caesar Rodney, afflicted with facial cancer rode tirelessly 80 miles throughout violent thunderstorms to break the Delaware deadlock and seal the fate of America.  In a recorded vote of 12-0-1, a snapshot of monumental import took place.  Thirteen fledgling colonies, of various backgrounds and beliefs, asserted themselves as the new era in the new world.  A place were a representative government by the people, for the people would rule the day; honoring the republican values sent down through the annals of history.

As we make our Independence Day preparations, take a simple moment to reflect and honor a seminal moment in the history of western civilization.  A moment in time where the perfect storm of circumstance coalesced in the great crucible of nation building.  I leave you with a excerpt from a letter that John Adams had written to his wife Abigail at the close of July the Second.

The second day of July 1776 will be the most memorable epocha in the history of America.  I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival.  It ought to be commemorated as the Day of Deliverance by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty.  It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, with games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations from one end of this continent to the other from this time forward forever more.

It is truly remarkable to hear a principle architect of this nation speak to us now in such a way.

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Popular opinion would say that the start of reality television began with MTV’s The Real World. This is not true. Reality television, a malignant tumor upon our airwaves, boasts roots that grow far deeper than MTV. Reality television is about giving an average person the ability to have fifteen minutes of fame on the old tube. Ever hear of game shows? While this brand of reality television is crude, the networks had to start somewhere. Game shows are to American Idol like the WW I propeller planes are to today’s F-22 fighter jet. Reality television continues to grow in leaps and bounds, giving rise to new programs taking advantage of the unsuspecting viewing audience in ever greater numbers. Like game shows, reality TV is cheap programming for TV networks. No actor salaries, minimal set and production costs, and better yet, you get to put poor fools in deplorably degrading situations for the entertainment of others. What’s the downside? For the networks: none. For everyone else: the continuous demise of intelligent AND entertaining programming. Every time a reality show graces my television for longer than five minutes I immediately lose 10 points from my IQ.

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The radio departed Kidd Chris has sunk to a new level and descended into the realm of the bloggers with his Hot Steamy Blog.  Earlier this morning I saw a bulletin come through from Kidd Chris’ MySpace page announcing his new venture in blogging.  As a big time fan of his, this was uplifting news as I can still be exposed to Foley’s rants and ravings even though he is off the air.

The site has only been up for a few days, but there have already been several posts.  Kidd Chris is a hard worker who is dedicated to his craft and to his fans.  Considering the new found spare time he has I would expect his blog to be a very active place.  No to mention this will keep us fans in the loop regarding his next career move.

I am a little disappointed though as it does not seem anyone can leave comments yet.  Hopefully this will change over time as it would be nice to have some back and forth interaction with the shock jock himself.

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• Pay my medical bills in full every time (that which is not covered by my insurance which I pay extra for)
• Generate clean, safe, reliable, CARBON FREE, energy for a living
• Vote
• Recycle paper, plastic bottles, tin cans, plastic bags, organic waste (in my dare I say wicked tomato garden), glass bottles, and lousy jokes.
• Donated more than 2% of my income to recognized charities last year and am on pace to pass that this year.
• Donated even more to unrecognized charities and that’s about all I’m going to say about that.
• Pay my taxes
• Only heat my house to 60 degrees in the winter, do not turn on my AC until it hits 90 degrees in the summer, and made energy saving modifications to my house in order to reduce my energy foot print (and save on my bills of course).
• Proudly display the American Flag
• Was named Clean Communities Person of the Year for the State of New Jersey at the age of 8.
• Worked 3 years in the deadliest, most physically exhausting profession on the planet to finance my education.
• Sacrifice my own standard of living which is by all accounts modest in order to ensure that upon retirement I will not be dependent on the generosity of others for survival.
• Was eligible to collect unemployment benefits at more than one point in my life but refused on principle despite the circumstances.

So if that makes me a Neocon - guilty.  The way I look at it, we Neocons, as liberals call us as if we might be insulted by such a label, are people of values, determination, and most of all we are people of action who do more than talk about how to make the world a better place - we get off our asses and do it.

~Man Overboard

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Let me start by saying it is inevitable.  Look at any web based news site right this very moment and you will undoubtedly see 5 headlines featuring the name Obama and if you are lucky a single headline featuring John McCain.  With so much painfully biased media coverage and the average Americans propensity for stupidity and Sheep-like tendencies it is no surprise to me that the political equivalent of the Backstreet Boys is a lock to become Commander in Chief of their largest arsenal in the history of mankind and the leader of the free world.

What will be the result?

As spoken in context of the introduction to an episode of The Twilight Zone - Picture if you will….

A man elected President of the United States despite a political record that is completely unknown to the majority of those who cast their vote in his favor.

American troops are instantly withdrawn from Iraq.  American military morale reaches its lowest point since the fall of Saigon - at best.  Radical Islam rejoices.

Those Iraqi’s who stood by American troops are slaughtered by the radical Islamists who now control the country.  Radical Islam rejoices.

Iranian troops, undeterred by the American president who has already promised to not use his military might against them, pour across the border and immediately subjugate the Sunni minority and massacre the Kurds in the North of the country who are denied refuge in their only option for escape, Turkey.  Radical Islam rejoices.

Extremists in Saudi Arabia, emboldened by the Iranian action, riot and overthrow the Saudi monarchy and adopt a Theocratic Muslim government friendly to the newly revitalized Persian Muslim Empire.  Radical Islam rejoices.

What little progress made in Israel is now gone as the Iranian Iatolas now control over 50% of the world’s oil and thus increase funding to Hezbollah and Hamas by orders of magnitude thus increasing their ability to wage war against Israel.  Radical Islam rejoices.

Moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is assassinated and his Fatah government is overthrown by Hammas militants who are hell bent on Israel’s destruction and not at all interested in peace with the Jewish nation.  Radical Islam rejoices.

Now for the Economy

National, government run healthcare is enacted. Taxes are raised.

If you borrowed more money than you could pay in a mortgage payment the government hands you a check and rewards you for your idiotic investment.  Taxes are raised.

The flow of illegal immigrants across the US border swells as Obama immediately halts construction of the border wall and refuses to take any action against illegal immigrants.  This new influx is also given access to free healthcare and continues to pay no taxes in America.  Taxes are raised.

Oil Companies are penalized for making profits.  This cost is not placed on the shoulders of the corporations but instead is passed on to the consumers in the form of price increases to a gallon of gas that now costs well over $10.00 per gallon thanks to the conditions in the Middle East.

Obama refuses to drill in ANWAR, and refuse to drill off the coast of Florida even though China and even Vietnam now do.  Gasoline now costs $12.00 per gallon.

Obama grants his campaign promise of making a college education every American’s “birth right.”  Taxes are raised.

If you make over $250,000 you are penalized for your success.  Taxes are raised.

Nothing what so ever is done about Social Security for another four years.  Taxes are raised.

Companies begin layoffs as they are unable to meet the out of control payroll taxes and maintain a successful business in light of price increases.  Unemployment reaches its highest level since the great depression. These unemployed people are now a burden on the welfare system.  Taxes are raised.

End result:

Radical Islam declares victory in the war against America.  AK-47s around the world are fired into the air.

Americans now pay $20.00 for a gallon of gas and 60% of their salaries to income taxes.

Bush is blamed.

And now I batten down the hatches and brace for the inevitable storm of comments brewing on the horizon at the hands of the Liberal Hoard that runs a racket on the internet in a manner reminiscent of La Cosa Nostra.  “Bring ‘em on” - George W. Bush

~Man Overboard

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My fiancée is the proud (I hope) ring-bearer of a tension setting engagement ring. Tension mounted rings are not easy to find because of their non-standard construction, which also makes them difficult to get your hands on. After a several month search and many jewelers consulted, I finally found one that said, “We don’t have that, BUT we are having a special event where a freelance jeweler comes to the store and does custom work right on site. He will be able to get the tension setting done for you.” The time comes, I go, we meet, diamond found and setting agreed upon, history written.

At the time, my nerves and newly empty wallet clouded my vision. I did not notice a critical feature of the ring that was not supposed to be present. A typical tension mount works by having the stone more or less float in between the two sides of the ring. To visualize, imagine shrinking a horseshoe down to ring size and putting a diamond in between the two sides. This is essentially what happens with a tension setting. Under normal circumstances, the ring is superheated and put under pressure to hold the diamond in place as there are no prongs to keep it stable. The diamond literally appears to float, hanging in the balance between the two sides of the ring. This ring had a solid platinum bar at the bottom of the diamond, acting as a rest. This severely detracts from the floating appearance of the diamond and also led to other problems.

The phantom bar at the bottom of the diamond turns out to be a dirt collector. The tiny spaces and flat surface are conducive to dust and dirt particles collecting on the metal. In addition, the diamond became loose after eight weeks. I have a hard time accepting that we will need to get the diamond tightened every eight weeks for the rest of our lives. I expressed this to the store where I purchased the ring, and not surprisingly, they tried to blame it on the wear and tear my fiancée was putting on the ring coupled with the nature of the tension mount. This is the point where I lost composure.

To summarize, the conversation wound up somewhere with me saying, “Look, I don’t care if she punches someone in the face; that diamond is supposed to stay in there, and it would if you had competent people working here to set the diamond properly.” Needless to say, the customer-blaming stopped and I was promptly given two options (1) try to get a local jeweler to remove the extraneous bar and set the diamond correctly or (2) get refunded for the amount of the setting and get them to re-set the diamond in a new ring at the next event. At least I got some sort of piece of mind.

If you are in the market for a tension setting ring, make sure that you only purchase from a manufacturer who deals specifically with tension settings. This is not an easy goal, you may have to purchase the ring online. However, it is worth the headache because finding out later that someone who told you they can perform the tension setting really cannot is a lot more stressful.

In conclusion: I hate jewelry.

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…and Exemplifies the Ongoing Collapse of the Mainstream Media

This past Monday, oil evangelist Jason Morgan wrote a salient piece highlighting the heavy taxation that accounts for the lionshare of European fuel costs.  Well apparently someone was paying attention as the article earned some serious recognition in the Europe Insight blog section of BusinessWeek.  The article, The Surprising Truth About Gas Prices, relies heavily on Mogul Morgan’s analysis - and the its author, Mark Scott, agrees fully with the information Jay offered to the great (albeit few) readers of Babeled.

And now for the moment of truth (you may begin laughing now) … this excerpt was taken from the second paragraph of the BusinessWeek article:

Yet do Europeans really fork out more for gas? In a telling piece, the guys over at Babeled lay out the true costs of gas prices on both sides of the Atlantic. Their conclusion — Europeans in fact pay 95 cents less than Americans before taxes are levied. In the U.S., for example, they reckon about 11% of the final cost per gallon goes to Uncle Sam, compared to 70% of gas prices being pocketed by European governments.

Not bad - not only did Jason earn us a quality back link, we also got a nice little name drop too.  Well done Jay and God help the state of the media.

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Long gone are the days of the vision quest.

No more do we mark the transitions of life by sending our loved ones unprepared into the wilderness. No more do we get the opportunity to take on a wolf, mano a mano. I’d be down. I’d put that wolf in a headlock till it called me daddy.

But even if I have the opportunity to go on a vision quest, it sadly would be of my own accord. No more are these awesome experiences built in to the fabric of our society. What then is an American left to do when they need to mark a significant moment in their life?

GET F*CKED UP!!!

That’s just the way it is around these parts. When we want to mark stages of our life we drink alcohol. Managing to make it to the bathroom without puking in public is the new quest. And the visions will come if you keep drinking for enough years - its called Delirium Tremens.

Image courtesy of Youthink.

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I was thinking a lot before I wrote these lines mainly because I don’t want to mess up my relations with my Yankee fan friends (Next game tomorrow; is it Baltimore’s turn?). I am also getting a better understanding of the game believe it or not, and it is all from watching the kids playing in Boston Common on Saturday mornings.

I like Boston. It’s a great city and I am excited to start my new job there at the Sheraton Boston Hotel. I was amazed to find out how strong the baseball culture caught everyone. (During my tour with the Assistant to the Hotel’s Manager, he excused himself by checking his Palm, and went on and on with angry remarks, such as wishing Ramirez to go the hell). Yes, it is the home to many baseball fanatic fans, which will vote by their legs and come to the Fenway Park for any game and won’t leave you any chance to get a ticket less than week in advance. However, if you were chosen as an Employee of the Month, you could receive tickets to the game.

But the main reason I find Boston an attractive and cool city is because it is also a student’s city. Anywhere you go you see many young men and women, at the bars and restaurants or in the park, always up to having a good conversation. Yes, I do think people in New England are friendly and definitely filled with many intellectual students who have a lot of energy. I like to be around these kinds of people, refill my energy tanks and get inspired. Moreover, I invite all of you, my Southern Jersey friends, leave the Poker table behind you just for few days, and come here to visit Boston. It is definitely the time of the year to be around. Have a great summer!

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Every time I drive to school in the morning I am faced with a menacing situation that causes drivers to slam on their brakes, stop suddenly in the middle of a busy highway or crawl along at 30 mph below the posted speed limit. No, I am not talking about a massive fruit truck disaster. I am talking about school buses and school zones. I hate school buses and school zones. There is no reason whatsoever that there should ever be a school bus stop on a major four-lane highway. There is even less reason why that bus stop should be followed by another bus stop thirty feet down the road. These kids can’t walk fifteen feet each and meet in the middle? They have to be picked up at the terminus of their driveway. Ridiculous. You can’t even go around the stupid thing. I have to stop my vehicle, even in the other lane, for this bus stop. At a grown up bus stop, the bus itself doesn’t even come to a stop sometimes. Forget about the other cars stopping.

If those of us who chose to reproduce took any responsibility for themselves and their children, they would teach the little parasites to stay out of the road and look both ways before running out into a highway. Then everyone else wouldn’t need to adjust their lives to accommodate other peoples’ unwillingness to teach their children. Kids should learn to be responsible for themselves. There won’t be any school bus to protect them when they are older, and they will have no idea that the whole world doesn’t stop just so that they can cross the street.

We are turning our children into a bunch of wimpy, slack-jawed mouth breathers who can not even avoid being hit by a car while standing on the side of the road. A bunch of babies who can not even walk across the street without every single car in both directions coming to a complete halt. Why should I put myself at risk of being rear ended by some careless moron who doesn’t see all the unnecessarily stopped vehicles in front of him? I have no vile little progeny running around not knowing how to cross a damn street. Why should I have to alter my life to make space for other people’s untrained idiot children?

And school zones are even worse. By the time the brats are in the school zone there are government subsidized babysitters running around telling the little morons what to do. Yet, everyone still has to go real slow just in case one of the wee beasties breaks free and chases its imaginary friend on to the road. If that happens, it should be the baby sitters’ problem, not my problem. The road is for cars, not kids. If your babysitters are inadequate, then large fences should be erected to prevent such an occurrence, preferably electric.

It is things like school zones that stop the good work of evolution. Can’t cross a street correctly? You deserve what’s coming to you. Get out of my gene pool, you are peeing in it.

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