16
Mar
Well I made it to Austin without incident. The new route I took shaved off some of the drive but it was still murder. The roads are good, the directions accurate, but driving for three hours plays hell with my back. I love Freddy and absolutely appreciate his couch but it wasn’t what my back needed. I will probably opt for the floor tonight so my back isn’t pre-murdered before I start walking the festival tomorrow. Of course this promises to be a great time but, as always, the dark specter of finances is looming along with family stuff so I may be forced to cut this trip short. It’s starting to look like it’s either that or not eat for next five days and that’s not really an option. To clarify the family stuff is not stuff I would have to cut the trip short over but it is weighing on my mind and with the other I might feel more relaxed cutting this trip short and spending some time with the clan over the rest of my vacation.
While I am relaxing and getting some well needed mental floss I see that the Chicago machine goes to Washington has resorted to outright strongarm tactics to try and get their doomed healthcare plan to pass. While they accuse the Republicans of being partisan out of one side of their mouth the other side is telling their own part members that if they vote against this bill the President won’t campaign for them! I think there’s a pot calling and it appears to be for the kettle in the White House. Wow Political Correctness has really run amok. I almost didn’t use that phrase because it might be considered racist. If it is: So be it. But I digress. So the White House is applying typical Chicago politics to try and get on-the-fence members of their party to sacrifice their careers while public opinion of the bill, the methods, and the whole of the White House dips lower and lower. While I don’t approve of this so-called health care reform, or any other at the federal level, I am highly amused at the process. At this point they are using tactics that might even go against SCOTUS rulings and be enough off the farm that the whole bill gets struck down without ever going into effect. The Democrats are throwing people under the bus on an almost daily basis and Pelosi’s suicide squad likely won’t even gather enough votes to pass this. We’ll have to wait and see but at least the circus is amusing. And, hey, the nation gets to see how they do it in Chicago.
The more I learn about church politics, not churches being political but politics internal to churches, in restoration movement churches the more I am convinced we have failed to restore anything. We don’t operate anything like the first church much less like a family. When a church board is all businessmen and they run the church like a business the only thing I can think about is Christ’s reaction to moneychangers in the temple. The church members are not customers of the church and if we treat them like such we practice not charity, longsuffering, or any other good quality mentioned in the New Testament. That venerable rabbi we claim to follow would have been appalled at the modern church especially at Western church with our seeker-friendly branches, our complete and utter lack of unity, our backbiting, and so much more then we top off the slap in the face to everything Christ taught by having businesses masquerading as churches. As time passes I become more and more disillusioned with the whole of Protestant churches and look toward the East and Orthodoxy. I am not there yet. I remain unconvinced on the one single verse necessary for me to convert. Who knows, an epiphany could be just around the corner.
Well that’s what was on my mind this morning along with Austin traffic sucking almost as bad a Houston and the former’s drives being worse in the rain that the latter with a few sprinklings of excitement while poring over the artist directory for #sxsw.
So if you are in Austin drop me a note and we’ll hook up. I may even let you buy me a drink or a taco. Remember to follow the whole 9b crew through our Austin adventures. You can find us here:
Me:
Twitter
Foursquare
(I don’t bother with facebook much so I am not linking my profile here)
Kasey Anderson:
Twitter
And of course whatever we manage to actually post to ninebullets.net.
Be sure and hit up our party tomorrow night as well!
It doesn’t matter whether or not you think the current plan will help the medical system in this country. It doesn’t matter if you believe that there is a right to health care or how far you believe that right extends. It doesn’t matter how you feel about the issue at all. In fact most of my readers probably disagree with my stance in the issue and that’s fine. What matter is the fact our elected representatives are elected to represent us and they are not. They public, overwhelmingly, opposes any attempt to use reconciliation to shoehorn in a health care plan. The fact our representatives are considering it shows that they do not care what we want and believe that they know better what we need than we do. The fact they claim this deserves an up or down vote is also patently insane. Our government was designed to do what the people want regardless of whether it is good for us or not. The protections laid out in the Constitution all protect us from the government and not the other way around. The senate rules, filibuster included, were designed so that 51% of the elected representatives didn’t get piss in the other 49% coffee. These things are in place to insure not only that we, the people and the government, act as a Constitutional Republic but so that we don’t get bulldozed. Right now that’s exactly what our government is trying to do to us. The reconciliation rules were designed to streamline the budget process and not to allow legislation that a majority of the population opposes to be enacted. The MSM is saying, and correctly, that Republicans have used reconciliation a lot in the past while and it is true. However what they don’t tell you is that it has been used for items related to the budget an overwhelming majority of those uses. Tax cuts are a valid use of the reconciliation process as they are part of the federal budget. The changes that the powers that be want to make using reconciliation go beyond items that affect the federal budget. Some items are actually valid but, in this case, a majority of them are not. And for the record I do not approve of the few times that Republicans used the process to sneak in changes that weren’t directly related to the federal budget and would oppose the use of reconciliation by folks I agree with just as vehemently because I firmly believe the government does not have the right to act outside the will of the people. The will of the people is obvious here folks. It’s in every poll.
Furthermore this unprecedented use of the reconciliation process will open it up to further abuse by sides of the corrupt political spectrum. This cannot and will not be a good thing. It will embolden both parties to use the process in ways that it was never intended to be used whenever partisanship rears its head and they want to bully the other side.
Right now the Democrats are crying about the filibuster process but they seem to forget that it was a Democrat that changed the rules to make it a procedural thing that is quiet and bloodless. Prior to the 1970′s a filibuster required continuous speeches on the floor of the Senate and then Mike Mansfield (D-MT) led a charge to change the rules and make the filibuster a quiet little paper blockade and at the same time changed the cloture requirements from 2/3 to the current 3/5. So the procedural hurdle that the Democrats can’t overcome is one that they put into place. By my count they have enough votes in the Senate to meet the 2/3 requirement that they changed. Now they want to use reconciliation, a tool both parties have used incorrectly in the past, in a manner that it has never been used and possibly in a manner that is not entirely legal.
So if you agree with nationalized health care you should still oppose this process that the President appears to be ready to order his lackeys to follow because it will open up any legislation passed to even more lawsuits beyond the already present problems. It will open the floodgates for either side to shove legislation through that couldn’t have been passed any other way. It will make mockery of the Senate rules and a further mockery of our Senators actually representing us. None of these things is healthy for the country regardless of how you feel about the law they are trying to slide through this back door. This process almost insures that if the legislation makes it through it will be brought before SCOTUS even faster than before and very likely struck down for violating the process necessary to pass laws in this country. It will sign the political death warrant of most of the people involved and power will change hands in a head spinning manner.
Obama is a one term President. He knows it. Congress knows it. The public knows it. He is trying to push his agenda, right or wrong, by any means necessary during that term. He knows that this is an election year. He knows he is leading his party to a slaughter on election day but all he cares about is his legacy and agenda. More and more Democrats are realizing this but with Pelosi doing the same thing they are afraid of being thrown under the bus at any given point. It’s not safe in Washington right now and the powers that be want to make sure they push their agenda down our throats whether we like it or not before they lose the power to do so. It is sickening to be honest. I don’t care what party is in power. This pushing of agendas through back doors and loopholes is wrong.
Call your representatives. Call your congressman. Let them know you do not support them refusing to represent their constituents. Let them know their jobs are on the line. Make your voice heard. I firmly believe that even with reconciliation that health care reform, at least this iteration, won’t make into law but this is a good time to let Washington know they are supposed to represent us and not do what they believe is best for us whether we want it or not. Let them know they are getting too big for their britches and maybe we can change something come election day. I don’t care what letter a person has by their name. If they swore to vote the will of their constituents regardless of their personal beliefs, and I believed they meant it (like that would ever happen), I wouldn’t think twice about voting for them.
The whole modern world has divided itself into Conservatives and Progressives. The business of Progressives is to go on making mistakes. The business of the Conservatives is to prevent the mistakes from being corrected. – G.K. Chesterton
14
Oct
I don’t have anything I am feeling really passionate about today but I want to try and not miss my schedule so here are some links that concern issues I care about. The commentary is from people I agree with as I don’t give a damn about presenting any sort of “balanced” view.
- D & D sets out to prove that “Free” works as a business model
- More Big Media Companies Just Don’t Get It (Be sure to check out my wife’s comments in the thread. You should be able to figure out who she is.)
- Ronald Reagan on Socialized Medicine
- How the Baucus Bill Will Drive Up Healthcare Costs
- The Stimulus is Working, The Stimulus is Working, The Sky is Fall…Oh Wait!
- Anti-RIAA blogger/lawyer not a “vexatious” litigant
- Repo of Freedom of Information Act Documents
- Cutting the Federal Government’s Budget
Something may jump out at me later and inspire me to commentary but for now enjoy the links above. It’s not much but at least I got something up today.
24
Sep
As I have mentioned recently I don’t read many blogs anymore however one of the few I still peruse has got me thinking on some rather sensitive and controversial topics. I would be dishonest if I didn’t give a hat tip to Tony Woodlief before I launched into this quagmire of thoughts I need to get sorted. You see I find it rare that my opinions, stances, position, or whatever you want to call them are challenged in a manner that makes me seriously reconsider them. The reason for this is that I have trained myself not to take a position until I have thought things through reasonably well. Of course there are things that are blazingly obvious but for more esoteric or issues with gray areas I take time to formulate a logical position that doesn’t contradict my core values. This provides me with a degree of certainty that seems to lacking in some of my peers. So when presented with an argument, or an explanation of an opposing position, I usually have my response ready. This doesn’t mean I am reciting rote talking points but rather that I have thought through the argument already. As an aside I try surround myself with people who are strong in their beliefs and can articulate their positions with ease. I would prefer to be friends with someone who disagrees with my on social and political issues but can articulate their position well as a friend over someone who agrees with me but regurgitates talking points and bumper sticker slogans but I digress…
Tony’s post on torture got me thinking. It has been a long time since this topic came up in conversation and it probably won’t since it’s sensitive and inflammatory for most people. I had thought through and taken a position that torture, to a certain degree, could be justified as self-defense in the same manner as war. In my thoughts there were some lines, however hazily defined, that one shouldn’t cross. So I could support things like water-boarding or making Muslims stand around naked in the company of the opposite sex but would never support using pliers to yank our fingernails. I didn’t put much thought into any given method of torture but knew that I had a line drawn at mutilation. There may have been other lines but unless something came up that took me there I hadn’t firmly defined them. I was quite comfortable in my thought process and could argue my position convincingly. Self-defense is justifiable so all I had to do is show how torture could be self-defense. It was quite a nice position to take as it was easy to defend. This position was also one of the laziest positions I have ever taken. I did mental gymnastics to squeeze torture into the self-defense category and then stopped right there. Once it was self-defense I didn’t need to weigh it against my moral compass because I already believe self-defense is a moral act.
Then Tony posted the previously linked article which was inspired by Andrew Sullivan’s piece in The Atlantic. I read Tony’s piece and started evaluating my position and this morning read Andrew’s piece and came to some conclusions. But before I go on to my conclusions here is brief excerpt of Andrew’s article (which you should now go read in full):
…torture is not defined in law or morality by the production of blood or by any specific technique—that would simply invite governments to devise techniques other than those prohibited. Torture is defined by the imposition of “severe mental or physical pain or suffering” to the point when a human being can bear it no longer and tells his interrogators something—true or untrue—to stop what cannot be endured. That’s torture, in plain English.
and
But torture has no defense whatsoever in Christian morality. There are no circumstances in which it can be justified, let alone integrated as a formal program within a democratic government. The Catholic catechism states, “Torture which uses physical or moral violence to extract confessions… is contrary to respect for the person and for human dignity.” Dignity is the critical word there. Even evil men are human and redeemable. Our faith demands that, even in legitimate punishment or interrogation, the dignity of prisoners must be respected. Our faith teaches that each of us—even Khalid Sheikh Mohammed—is made in the image of God. To violate that imago Dei by stripping and freezing him, by slamming him against a wall, or strapping him to a board to nearly drown him again and again and again, to bombard him with noise and light until he loses his mind, to reduce a human being to a mental and spiritual shell—nothing can justify this for a Christian. Nothing. To wield that power is to wield evil. And such evil is almost always committed by those who believe they are pursuing good.
The four page letter to President Bush from Mr. Sullivan shed a new light on things for me. The stance on torture from a Christian perspective can, in my opinion, be only that it is always wrong. I don’t want that to be the case. My brain wants to think that anything that saves the lives of American soldiers can be justified. I am not comfortable with this position but that’s the amazing thing about right and wrong and that is that right doesn’t always feel good. A quick look at scripture shows up not only what Mr. Sullivan pointed out, we are all made in the image of God, but furthermore that our response to terrorists should be the same as our response to anyone who wrongs us: But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. (Luke 6:27-31 NASB) and Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned. (Luke 6:36-37 NASB). I could post more but I think those two verses alone show what our response should be personally and what sort of government response we can support, as Christians, in relation to any situation or even any attack on our country.
I am ashamed to admit my previously held position on torture. Maybe I could rationalize that some of the methods Mr. Sullivan takes Pres. Bush to task for are not actually torture, in fact some have been found not be under the Geneva Convention, but that would simply be rationalization. The methods used were not merciful, they were not doing good to those that hate us, and certainly were not loving our enemies. I can no longer, in good conscience hold my previous position that torture is a means of self-defense used during war time. I am not sure where I will draw the lines this time but I can say, with certainty that my previous position is untenable in the face of own core moral and values and thus has been kicked to curb. What can be justified in light of the scripture posted above I do not know. I do know that the acts committed by our soldiers and listed Mr. Sullivan’s article, for the most part, are indefensible. To be honest I might could see sleep deprivation as a humane method of extracting information but that may be my own desire to have some method, any method, of extracting information from our enemies. It may take a while for me to form a new concrete position on this issue and I probably won’t post about when I do since those things kind of happen in the background and I likely won’t notice but the process has begun.
I think the one thing that Mr. Sullivan and I disagree on is that the current administration should pursue legal action against those involved. I do not condone the acts and am honestly sickened by some of them but I do not believe that going after those who were not directly involved, and the military did that, with these things so far in the past is in the best interest of our country. I take the stand that these things happened and should never happen again. Those directly involved were taken to task over their actions and at some point the pursuit of retribution has to stop. Bush will never authorize anything like this again as he doesn’t have the power. We have no proof how much he knew, though it is obvious he knew some of the atrocities were going on, and at this point we hold these actions and decisions to be derided as incompetent, disgusting, and never to be repeated. We follow the same principals Mr. Sullivan espouses on the treatment of prisoners and we forgive Pres. Bush and the rest who were not directly involved and let this go down in history as a moment of shame for our government and military. Putting the men in governmental position in jail for these acts serves no purpose at this time and wouldn’t act as a preventative measure for any governmental official in the future. It would simply do nothing from those perspective but worse yet it would offer absolution to those who might have had a hand in these acts. They could serve their time and walk away feeling like that had paid for their crimes. We should simply forgive them publicly and without reservation and let God decide on a just reward for their actions.
I had a couple of other issues I wanted to address but this has become one of my longer posts and so those other issues will have to wait for other posts. I hope these political/moral/religious posts give all three of my readers things to think about and I really hope I challenge your views at times. I am not the best writer in the world but if I make the three of you think then all of my drivel here is worth it. And yeah I know this is a day late but it took longer than a day to get it all sorted into a coherent train of thought. Thanks for your patience.
I don’t have any life management tips today nor do I have any real updates on my struggle to manage my own life. I also missed the politics post on Wednesday so I suck. I have been busy at work on a project that firmly has my attention so nothing is wrong per se. I am learning PHP, well more PHP, for the purposes of adding to or recoding the web interface we use for Linux deployment. Of course learning a new programming/scripting language requires that you actually code so that’s what I am doing. I am writing a frontend for MixWidget (the tape thingy I use for mixes and intros). It’s not going to be something you can build a whole site with like the old MixWidget of Muxtape but something you can install on a site like this one and use to make your own compilations. There won’t be any multi-user functionality ever but it’s looking pretty slick so far. The obstacles I have to overcome are: file uploads, archive extraction, validating uploaded/extracted files, creation of XML files, and a couple of other little nagging bits. I also plan for this to be self-installing so it will be easy to use. I like mix tapes and think MixWidget is a cool interface for them but it’s damn annoying to use since it relies on text files for all of its configuration and that results in a lot of file editing to put a mix tape up on your site. I have a BASH script that does everything except create the playlist but that’s still not user friendly. So when the chance for me to learn PHP by working on whatever I wanted to work on came up I took it. I will likely toss in some AJAX as well but that’ll mostly be stuff other people have written. I did actually think about workflow and the UI before I started coding so it looks decent is easy to use. When I get a little more done I’ll put up a demo somewhere. Being focused on this as well as my other projects is why I haven’t been tweeting, updating FB, or posting here all that often. I did get the Monday Mixtape up on time so techincally I only missed one post this week. I guess that ain’t bad.
I seem to have lost around 90% of the regular blogs I used to read. Better yet they seem to have lost me. What I mean is that they have gone so far off the deep end since President Obama was elected I can’t stomach them any longer. About half of them are birthers, a bunch of others are pretty much hate filled racists at this point, and some of the others are simply doomsayers. I don’t have time for that lot any more. I have much better things to do with myself than follow around soft headed morons as a cheerleader. So my daily reads are now pretty much technology sites and few folks who haven’t had the koo-aid in the past year or so. I do miss being part of the conservative blogosphere like I was back in the minion days but I think I miss talking to people more than I miss the blog part of it. I am not welcome in many places I used to comment, and by not welcome I simply mean derided and ridiculed, so I don’t go there. It seems like reasonable thought has fled the general public and if you aren’t polarized to either extreme then niether side wants to hear your ideas or thoughts. That’s pretty sad actually but it’s also commentary on the current state of things. I am not sure what that commentary says but I am pretty sure it’s not good.
So here I sit, halfway through the last day before the weekend, surrounded by PHP books and a regex book, posting here in an attempt to pull back and not get forest-for-the-trees syndrome. I am not inspired and I don’t have any exceptional ideas but I do have a bunch of words that may have made sense in the order I spat them out from my fingers to the keyboard and eventually to your screen. I need to look into planning my weekend so it’s not like last weekend but other than that I think I am about done.
Have a great weekend everyone!
