tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59263452011-04-21T17:38:45.329-04:00Musings on self-evident truthsJeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.comBlogger371100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-22849988518913056852007-02-08T13:00:00.000-05:002007-02-08T13:00:18.621-05:00

It's been more than two years since I last posted to this blog. Following the re-election of President Bush, I really didn't see any particular purpose to keeping up with this blog. Debate the merits of a Kerry presidency all you will; I think the case for electing him over Bush overrode Kerry's faults as a candidate. And, in the end, I think that the past two years have borne out this idea.

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1100020143542391242004-11-09T11:58:00.000-05:002004-11-09T12:09:03.543-05:00

Let me offer a (probably) simplistic view of the differences in foreign policy between conservatives and liberals. Conservative voters, I think, tend to view America as an exceptional land. As such, the foreign policy of our country must perforce be, if not perfect, at least the best attempt at it. The view of liberal voters is that it is only due to the actions of our country that we are

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1099967419242461892004-11-08T21:30:00.000-05:002004-11-08T21:30:19.256-05:00

Okay, I have spent the best part of a week revising and reviewing what has happened. I've also read a number of the "What do we do next?" articles. And, there are some good ideas, some crap ideas and a lot of shirt rending and hair pulling. I've thought and thought some more. There are a lot of good thoughts about what the Democratic Party stands for. I think this sort of introspection is

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1099506423341810462004-11-03T13:27:00.000-05:002004-11-03T13:27:03.363-05:00

Good question, really.There's a part of me that wants to blow town. Go to France and become a cheese eating (supposed) surrender monkey. I want to run away to a place that has the beliefs I have. I want to be a part of a nation that believes in fundamental fairness. I want to be somewhere that believes that families shouldn't have to have two wage earners going 45+ hours a week just to barely

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1099504006037783402004-11-03T12:46:00.000-05:002004-11-03T12:46:46.116-05:00

Ahh damn it.In some ways I look at this as a referendum on Evangelical Christian morality than anything else. That and fear.Fear first. I know that the events of September 11, 2001 were devastating. As I noted before, I lost a family member and was scared nearly out of my mind about a dear friend that day. I've got a handle on how scary the idea of terrorists are. I also understand the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1099357303252788922004-11-01T20:01:00.000-05:002004-11-01T20:01:43.293-05:00

Well, I suppose it was inevitable that our Kerry/Edwards sign was stolen from our lawn this weekend. I suppose I should be more upset about it, but I can't muster up much more than a despairing sigh. To whomever took the sign Saturday night (early morning actually), you've gone and confirmed my worst suspicions about current political supporters on either side of the debate. Disagreement is

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1095734577227229282004-09-20T22:42:00.001-04:002004-09-20T22:42:57.246-04:00

I just finished readin Nicholson Baker's Checkpoint. It wasn't much, just 128 pages, and frankly I wasn't all that impressed. It was, for the most part, a long rant without any corroboration or supporting reference. I'm pretty familiar with the "butcher's bill" levied against this administration, so there wasn't anything new or shocking. Moreover, whatever shock value might have been derived

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1093379770661122672004-08-24T16:36:00.000-04:002004-08-24T16:36:10.660-04:00

Reading Paul Glastris take on Democratic tactics against Nader, I noted Glastris' desire to fight the political fight based on the issues. I thought I'd take a moment to clarify my take on the issues.Economy This seems obvious to me. For most folks, the past four years have not been good. Clearly the economy was headed downhill when Clinton left office, and 9/11 did nothing to help the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1092947073447480992004-08-19T16:24:00.000-04:002004-08-19T16:24:33.446-04:00

This is useless information, apropos of nothing, really. I just thought I'd share it as background information about me.1. West Wing2. CSI3. Law and Order4. Law and Order: Special Victims Unit5. Cold Case6. Without a Trace7. Navy NCIS8. The Daily Show9. Cowboy Bebop10. Celebrity Poker Showdown11. World Poker Tour12. Star Wars: Clone Wars13. MythBusters14. Rescue MeWhen football

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1092935370367015962004-08-19T13:09:00.000-04:002004-08-19T13:09:30.366-04:00

I had a girlfriend - my first really, truly, meet-the-parents, make plans for our future girlfriend - who once said that her best feature was her "childlike sense of wonder" and that this was something that everyone should have. She was right about that - she definitely had that sense of wonder and it was one of the things about her I loved. At some point I lost my sense of wonder. I'm mostly

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1092855999292091352004-08-18T15:06:00.000-04:002004-08-18T15:42:56.806-04:00

It's funny; when I began this blog, I had so much to say and so much to put out there. Now, almost 9 months later, it's been pretty slow, especially for the last six months. I'm having a hard time conceptualizing what I want to say. Moreover, I'm having a hard time finding a path for myself. I'm mired in a sort of existential funk - unable to do anything or make any changes.So what do I do?

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1090529256682372962004-07-22T16:47:00.000-04:002004-07-22T16:47:36.690-04:00

I was reading Tacitus today. While I am a liberal, I enjoy what Tacitus has to say. He usually presents himself as an independent thinker and someone who, while conservative, looks past the blather to understand what the core issues are. He's not one (usually) for vitriol or hype. Others amongst his crew are not so even-handed.At any rate, Bird Dog sallies forth today with a lot of blather

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1086720125588486192004-06-08T14:42:00.000-04:002004-06-08T14:42:05.596-04:00

At the most pedantic and technical level, all citizens are Americans. But that is not what I am thinking about. I am thinking about the quintessential spirit of America.I admit, I was put onto this path by reading Manuel Garcia, Jr.'s essay about being American. I've read it once and I will need to read it a few more times to absorb what he is saying. There is some truth there, but neither he

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1086700996013689332004-06-08T09:23:00.000-04:002004-06-08T09:47:16.023-04:00

Look, I didn't like the man as president. I thought of him in much the same way I think of Dubya - a buffoon surrounded by very competent people, whose ideas and ideology are abhorrent to me. I was glad to see him leave office.I also am glad he has died. The idea of losing one's mind is frightening to me, perhaps the most frightening thing I can imagine happening to me. Furthermore, the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1086187283094297182004-06-02T10:41:00.000-04:002004-06-08T09:16:54.060-04:00

In the late nineties, I lived in Battle Creek, Michigan. It is a fairly nice town, a (former?) company town. One of the local referenda that came up during my time of residence there was a millage increase to pay for school improvements, new schools and various other school related upgrades. It was defeated, though the need was clearly there. One of the reasons for the defeat was a concerted

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1084219054217432882004-05-10T15:57:00.000-04:002004-05-10T15:57:34.223-04:00

A good friend of mine in college made up a sixties/seventies mix tape and title it "A Veritable Plethora". It is interesting because I feel the same way about blog topics - there are so many to choose from that I have a hard time figuring out where to go.There's Abu Ghraib. Oh dear, what to say about that, which hasn't already been said, rehashed and said again. I found myself nearly on the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1083011892270855382004-04-26T16:38:00.000-04:002004-04-26T16:42:25.263-04:00

Over the weekend, I turned over and over in my head the idea that there has to be a better way for this country. A better way to govern, to get along, to cooperate, to reach consensus . . . in short to do all the things a government should do. I just ran into trouble trying to quantify that.It gets into pretty abstract territory - motivations and desires and so on. Basically, I do believe that

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1082578379999855372004-04-21T16:13:00.000-04:002004-04-21T16:17:06.483-04:00

Songs shuffled up by my iPod this afternoon:1. I Eat Cannibals - Total Coelo - MTV Class of 19832. In the Air Tonight - Phil Collins - No Jacket Required3. The Bad Touch - Bloodhound Gang - Hooray For Boobies4. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run5. Rockin' the Bronx - Black 47 - Fire of Freedom6. One True Love - Semisonic - All About Chemistry7. Goin' Up - Great Big Sea - Road

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1082402901025592312004-04-19T15:28:00.000-04:002004-04-19T15:32:24.450-04:00

It is one of the more often repeated memes that having children is a life changing experience. In my case, at least, that is certainly true. There are the obvious changes in what you say and do with kids around, as well as the things that you become familiar with (Barney, The Wiggles, Elmo and so on) that you would have been mortified to have to even acknowledged before. You think about

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1081774244822885812004-04-12T08:50:00.000-04:002004-04-14T20:08:37.856-04:00

It was interesting listening to Dr. Rice last week draw a distinction between tactical and strategic engagement of terrorists. This is something I have long thought the most appropriate tactic to take. Oddly, though, she spoke as though the two were mutually exclusive, when, in fact, they complement one another when done properly.The way I see it, those who perpetrate terrorist acts must be

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1080078632930565662004-03-23T16:50:00.000-05:002004-04-09T10:51:01.293-04:00

It's a pretty well used statement "9/11 Changed Everything". It was certainly a seminal event, but what did it change? In my mind, not much. It was pretty much just a very large scale proof of something I've come to grips with a while ago - we are vulnerable to people who want to kill us for whatever reason.Did we not know that the United States was vulnerable to terror? Certainly the World

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1076363821294385872004-02-09T16:57:00.000-05:002004-02-10T11:58:13.200-05:00

Are we the chosen ones?There is (and has been) a sense of American destiny. The sense that this country is the one and only model for enlightened government, culture and all else. Whether it is the "Shining City on a Hill", "Manifest Destiny" or the more current scents of American imperialism, there is a deeply held belief among much of the American population that we are the example for the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1076343796171123662004-02-09T11:23:00.000-05:002004-02-09T15:48:43.780-05:00

Long time, no blog, eh? Well, with Christmas, a nascent county commission campaign and the Panther's run to the Superbowl, I kinda lost track of things. But, I'm back. First topic up? What else, boob/breast/nipple-gate. And, I'll be quick and to the point. Don't we have something better to do with our time? There's a presidential primary. The new budget, with a deficit of $500 billion (not

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1071615224080432702003-12-16T17:53:00.000-05:002003-12-17T13:11:02.070-05:00

I was asked by a friend from work today about my bumper sticker. With some degree of friendly disappointment, they asked what I meant, and were somewhat unhappy with my response that it meant what it said, we shouldn't have attacked Iraq.So, I thought I'd take a moment and expound upon that. There were really three reasons cited for going to war in Iraq. I'll explain my arguments against

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1070402049885165072003-12-02T16:54:00.000-05:002003-12-10T16:15:07.840-05:00

If you watch enough cop/lawyer dramas on TV, you will eventually hear some lawyer (defense lawyer) use the phrase "fruit of the poisoned tree". What this means is that once some part of the evidence is tainted by misconduct, not only is that evidence disallowed, but all the evidence discovered as a result of the disallowed evidence is also disallowed. I tend to view election reform in much the

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1069797470857516772003-11-25T16:57:00.000-05:002003-12-02T16:12:34.706-05:00

There are three levels of government: local, state and federal. Perhaps the single longest running political argument in the United States is the struggle between folks who believe that the central seat of authority should lie in any one of those places. This debate was present at the Constitutional Convention in Philadephia, and it continues to dominate, in various ways, the debates this

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1068756713208751772003-11-17T12:25:00.000-05:002003-11-17T12:29:53.483-05:00

I watch the unfolding confirmation wars with mixed feelings. First of all, I have to give a little back history. When the Florida election debacle ended, I decided that I would make the best of it. Bush claimed to be a consensus builder and a man who could work both sides of the aisle. At first blush, there seemed little difference between Bush and Gore - on a political continuum, they seemed

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1068580046755015382003-11-11T14:47:00.000-05:002003-11-11T14:57:44.816-05:00

I personally view war as the last of all options and generally, war is a hallmark of a failure of policy. This is stand I may discuss further at a later time - today it is not the topic I want to address. General William Tecumseh Sherman said "War is hell." I do not know the context in which he made that remark - certainly the torching of Atlanta and his scorched earth campaign was hellish

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1068499109274553812003-11-10T16:18:00.000-05:002003-11-11T14:56:44.286-05:00

Working on these various entries/essays/rants/whatevers has crystallized a desire in me to run for office. It seems to me that I can rant and rave here in the blogosphere (and I am doing so) but real change will only come if I will it to happen. In other words, change starts with me. And, rather than be a sideline critic, I think I'd be better off joining the fray. My ultimate goal is to be

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1067915599320911002003-11-03T22:13:00.000-05:002003-11-04T21:23:12.793-05:00

Now, I'll state from the outset that I am a supporter of civil rights for gay couples. This means I believe that any rights and responsibilities I have gained by being a citizen and a married man should also accrue to gay individuals and couples. This does not mean special rights - it just means the same rights as me. As far as individual rights are concerned (with the notable exception of

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1067285866597408872003-10-27T15:17:00.000-05:002003-10-27T18:13:52.503-05:00

Such a plethora of topics. I wanted to address the new icon I added to my sidebar - my pro-gay marriage graphic. Actually, at some point I wanted to address my feelings on homosexuality in general. Today, though, events bring me to a topic that I hadn't considered lately. I've linked to Riverbend's blog before, so you can probably guess that I have a great deal of compassion for Iraqis who

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1066767846361277672003-10-27T12:54:00.000-05:002003-10-27T18:15:22.740-05:00

Jobs Leaving Charlotte I'm a Charlottean and a SAS programmer. Not too long ago, SAS programming was a marketable skill. Then it began to morph into business analysis, with less of an emphasis on programming. Now this - these SAS jobs, these business analyst positions are moving offshore. Okay, I can pretty much hear the gears grinding. "He's liberal, he's moaning about job loss, this is

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1066681056809997702003-10-20T16:17:00.000-04:002003-10-20T19:24:46.443-04:00

I find Fundamentalism, as it is defined in the dictionary, an odd concept. For one thing, it fails to recognize that the document which Fundamentalists insist is the literal and absolute truth, has been translated from its original language to another and then, in some cases translated again. What's more, the idiom of the time has been translated to a more modern idiom. In addition, there is,

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1066420290081454812003-10-19T10:30:00.000-04:002003-10-19T20:13:09.000-04:00

I am a liberal. I believe in the power of government helping folks over the power of corporations helping folks. That's not quite true - really I believe corporations only help anyone when it benefits them. Corporate altruism is either bad business or an oxymoron. Still, aside from the vitriolic rancor of O'Reilly, Limbaugh, Coulter et al, the serious theory behind conservatism is of interest

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1066250026414298042003-10-17T15:30:00.000-04:002003-10-17T15:37:21.970-04:00

Let me preface this by saying that my mother-in-law died in the World Trade Center. The issues surrounding that and how they affect my viewpoint are ones that are way too complex to look into here. I'm just letting you know that bit of background so you can take it into your calculations. Terrorism. Specifically, what do we do about terrorism? How do we stop it? Here is one truth I feel

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1066163095369015162003-10-14T16:24:00.000-04:002003-10-15T01:27:00.403-04:00

Wow, that was portentous. Or, perhaps I should say, that was pretentious? Whichever, what I wanted to do now was take a moment and introduce myself and explain what I am trying to do here. Blogs are, I think, very much a vanity thing. To imagine that one's own natterings are somehow of interest to the world at large is, I think, a very functional definition of vanity. The counter to that is

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5926345.post-1065846817790632092003-10-14T14:55:00.000-04:002003-10-15T01:26:39.980-04:00

All human life is equally valuable. Yes, I know, I'm not really breaking new ground here. But let's look at this statement closely. All human life, be it American or Iraqi, Palestinian or Israeli, Republican or Democrat is of equal value. Okay, this may be a bit more questionable, but still, this is pretty well within the scope of what is considered mainstream thought. All human life being

Jeffhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02268772867071944163noreply@blogger.com0