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| Men's Room Etiquette |
| 07.30.04 (10:05 am) [edit] |
Here at the office, there have been a few things bothering me about my male co-workers and their bathroom behavior. (and I’m sure you are just dieing to hear my opinions…
First of all, I understand that sometimes there is some splash back at the urinal. That’s simple physics. But sometimes there is a puddle – isn’t that just a bit excessive? If you’re so preoccupied that you can’t pay attention to your aim, then you probably shouldn’t be taking the time to pee in the first place.
I’m all for washing your hands after using the toilet. A nice rinse and a little soap is enough – really. Some guys scrub and wash their hands, wrists and lower arms like they are going into surgery. Now, since I personally don’t know where your dick’s been, I don’t know for certain what’s crawling on it, but maybe you’re being just a tad germ-phobic.
Now, about talking. The rule is: once your zipper goes down, there is no talking until it comes back up. (as a secondary rule, don’t talk to another guy while his zipper’s down either) I didn’t make the rule, I just follow it. If I’m mid-pee, I don’t want to discuss the latest problems in warehouse nor do I want to discuss last night’s Big Brother episode …
I feel much better now that I’ve gotten that off my chest. Thank you for your support.
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| 9/11 Victims' Families Begin Long Walk for Peace |
| 07.30.04 (9:09 am) [edit] |
I have to say that I would love to see this memorial at Arlington. The civilian dead are no less worthy of remembrance than the military dead.
[I]Published on Thursday, July 29, 2004 by the [url=http://www.ap.org/]Associated Press[/url] [/I]
[b]9/11 Victims' Families Begin Long Walk for Peace
by Adam Gorlick[/b]
They hit the road Wednesday with little fanfare, and their burden was heavy - 1,400 pounds to be exact.
A dozen peace activists - including several who lost relatives on Sept. 11, 2001 - set out from Boston on a 230-mile walk to New York City, pushing and pulling a granite slab that looks like an oversized tombstone.
The group is hauling its message of nonviolence from the Democratic National Convention here to the Republicans' presidential nominating event at the end of next month.
"Our suffering from pushing this stone is nothing like the suffering of those who have lost loved ones to violence and war," said David Potorti, 48, of Cary, N.C., whose brother Jim was killed in the World Trade Center attack.
Beginning at Copley Square, in the city's Back Bay neighborhood, the group made its way along the flat course of Beacon Street, arriving tired and sweaty a few hours later at an Episcopal church in Brookline, about five miles distant - the end of the first leg of their journey.
The Boston-to-New York walk is sponsored by [url=http://www.peacefultomorrows....]September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows [/url], a group formed soon after the attacks by victims' relatives who were opposed to America's invasion of Afghanistan.
"I thought that was a moment when the country would get involved in promoting international peace," said Terry Rockefeller, a 54-year-old documentary filmmaker from Arlington whose sister was at the top of the World Trade Center when it collapsed. "Instead, we responded with violence, which only brought more violence and suffering."
Members of the group have been to Afghanistan and Iraq to meet with people whose relatives were killed in the wars there. They came home and tried to share the stories of the survivors with Americans, in hopes of convincing people the country has taken the wrong route in dealing with terrorism.
"Our work is mostly changing hearts and perspectives one person at a time," said Potorti, who works full time for the group. "There aren't a lot of us, but we try to make simple, symbolic gestures that will resonate with people."
The group first walked from Washington to New York - without the stone - in November 2001.
The monument itself, a massive chunk of granite quarried from the grounds of the Peace Abbey in Sherborn, is inscribed to "UNKNOWN CIVILIANS KILLED IN WAR."
When it's not being hauled along the highways and byways, it lives at the Peace Abbey, a multi-faith retreat center that includes a pacifist memorial and animal sanctuary.
Peace activists have lobbied the government to give the stone, or one like it, a place in Arlington National Cemetery. A similar stone with the same inscription was dragged from Massachusetts to Washington in 1999, but cemetery officials declined the offer. That stone is currently in the United Kingdom.
Once they arrive at the Republican convention, the activists are hoping to convince delegates to push the Bush Administration to install the new stone at Arlington.
Some walkers will stay on for the entire trip, while others will walk a few days and be replaced by others.
Nick Burlakoff, 57, of Ossining, N.Y., heard about the walk and felt compelled to join for the full route.
"To spend a few weeks out of my life to do something for peace isn't really a lot to ask," he said.
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| More on Wal-Martians ... |
| 07.28.04 (7:53 am) [edit] |
Maybe I live in the wrong part of the world (Texas isn't exactly a cultural epicenter) but I never heard the word Wal-Martian before today...
But, being the person I am, I googled it and learned that it was first introduced into the English language (by an Englishman no less) in [url=http://www.wordspy.com/words/...]1992[/url] .
So, for those that need to know, here is an 'official' definition of the term:
[b]Wal-Martian[/b] (wawl.MAR.shun) noun. 1. A person who does most of their shopping at Wal-Mart. 2. A person who works at Wal-Mart. Also: walmartian. —adj. Relating to such a person.
.... however, it may not be an official word yet as it doesn't yet appear in the OED ...
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| Wal-Martian Invasion |
| 07.28.04 (7:16 am) [edit] |
I stumbled across this article purely by accident .... but the fates must have been smiling on me because I was in Wal-Mart last night getting groceries to last until payday (it's one of [i]those[/i] weeks) because they're cheap - all the time wondering what I was doing there...
Well, that and 'Wal-Martians' is the best name!!
I don't like their stores in the first place - they're cramped and messy and no one (staff or customers) seem to be all that happy to be there - and I find myself getting closer and closer to joining the boycott bandwagon.
My downfall is that it's unfortunately the closest store to my house and Tom Thumb never seems to have Iams Large Breed dog food in stock ..... Anyway, read this article - enjoy it, lovc it, live it, be it.
[i]Published on Tuesday, July 27, 2004 by the [url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/]Baltimore Sun[/url] [/i]
[b]Wal-Martian Invasion [/b]
by Barbara Ehrenreich
It's torn cities apart from Inglewood, Calif., to Chicago, and engulfed the entire state of Vermont. Now the conflict's gone national as a presidential campaign issue, with John Kerry hammering the mega-retailer for its abysmally low wages and Dick Cheney praising it for its "spirit of enterprise, fair dealing and integrity." This could be the central battle of the 21st century: Earth people vs. the Wal-Martians.
No one knows exactly when the pod landed on our planet, but it seemed normal enough during its early years of gentle expansion. Almost too normal, if you thought about it, with those smiley faces and that red-white-and-blue bunting, like the space invaders in a 1950s sci-fi flick when they put on their human suits.
Then it began to grow. By 2000, measures of mere size - bigger than General Motors! Richer than Switzerland! - no longer told the whole story. It's the velocity of growth that you need to measure now: two new stores opening and $1 billion worth of U.S. real estate bought up every week; almost 600,000 American employees churned through in a year (that's at a 44 percent turnover rate). My thumbnail calculation suggests that by the year 4004, every square inch of the United States will be covered by supercenters, so that the only place for new supercenters will be on top of existing ones.
Wal-Mart will be in trouble long before that, of course, because with everyone on the planet working for the company or its suppliers, hardly anyone will be able to shop there. Wal-Mart is frequently lauded for bringing consumerism to the masses, but more than half of its own "associates," as the employees are euphemistically termed, cannot afford the company's health insurance, never mind its Faded Glory jeans.
With hourly wages declining throughout the economy, Wal-Mart - the nation's largest employer - is already seeing its sales go soft.
In my own brief stint at the company in 2000, I worked with a woman for whom a $7 Wal-Mart polo shirt, of the kind we had been ordered to wear, was an impossible dream: It took us an hour to earn that much.
Some stores encourage their employees to apply for food stamps and welfare; many take second jobs. Critics point out that Wal-Mart has consumed $1 billion in public subsidies, but that doesn't count the government expenditures required to keep its associates alive. Apparently the Wal-Martians, before landing, failed to check on the biological requirements for human life.
But a creature afflicted with the appetite of a starved hyena doesn't have time for niceties. Wal-Mart is facing class-action lawsuits over sex discrimination and nonpayment for overtime work (meaning no payment at all), as well as accusations that employees have been locked into stores overnight, unable to get help even in medical emergencies. These are the kinds of conditions we associate with Third World sweatshops, and in fact Wal-Mart fails at least five out of 10 criteria set by the Worker Rights Consortium, which monitors universities' sources of logoed apparel - making Wal-Mart the world's largest sweatshop.
Confronted with its crimes, the folks at the Bentonville, Ark., headquarters whimper that the company has gotten too "decentralized" - meaning out of control - which has to be interpreted as a cry for help. But who is prepared to step forward and show Wal-Mart how to coexist with the people of its chosen planet? Certainly not the enablers, such as George Will and National Review's Jay Nordlinger, who smear the company's critics as a "liberal intelligentsia" that favors Williams-Sonoma. (Disclosure: I prefer Costco, which pays decent wages, insures 90 percent of its employees and is reputedly run by native-born humans.)
No, Wal-Mart's only hope lies with its ostensible opponents, such as Madeline Janis-Aparicio, who led the successful fight against a new superstore in Inglewood.
"The point is not to destroy them," she told me, "but to make them accountable."
Andy Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union, will soon begin a national effort to "bring Wal-Mart up to standards we can live with." He envisions a nationwide movement bringing together the unions, churches, community organizations and environmentalists who are already standing up to the company's recklessly metastatic growth.
Earth to Wal-Mars, or wherever you come from: Live with us or go back to the mothership.
Copyright © 2004 by The Baltimore Sun
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| Who is that Fabulous Boy? |
| 07.27.04 (8:44 am) [edit] |
I think it's time to stroke my vanity for a moment.
I have been losing weight steadily since last Thanksgiving. Since then, I've lost 32 pounds which translates into two pants sizes (from a 40 to a 36) as well as switching from XL to L shirt sizes. I know weigh 202 pounds - that would be 92.6 kilos (I like that number much better.)
For the past month, I've pretty much hit a plateau and haven't lost an ounce. While I usually feel all skinny and pretty, I've found myself looking at my remaining extra weight and getting depressed. :cry:
Now for the vanity part.... Last saturday I was at Club One. I had just got off the dance floor and had my shirt off covered in a shiny layer of sweat. A younger guy - short, buff, cute - walked past me and did a major cruise complete with a second look and a smile.
I take any flirt or knowing glance as a compliment, but this was a guy that I would normally consider out of my league so I took to be a MAJOR compliment ....
Then, to boost me up alittle more I had 3 people from 3 separate groups at work compliment me on how thin I'm looking. One of them, a straight guy in my group spent the day referring to me as a string bean....
So, I may still have extra weight and I may focus on my own perceived physical shortcomings - but I'm hot. :D
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| How Many People Have to Die Just to Prove that We're Tough? |
| 07.23.04 (8:44 am) [edit] |
As of this morning, 906 US soldiers have died in Iraq. Since the alleged ‘transfer of sovereignty’, [url=http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2...] 52 American Soldiers [/url] have been killed. That’s death rate of 2 per day since the 28th of June. Is that enough? Will there ever be enough?
I just got confirmation that my younger brother’s reserve unit is being activated in August and he will be going to Iraq for 18 months. Now, I’m annoyed at him for enlisting in the reserves in the first place after doing 12 years active duty, but I’m even more annoyed at the government for tossing him into danger for no reason.
I’ve been against this misconceived war since the first rumblings really started in September 2002. I attended my first anti-war rally in October 2002. I continue to oppose this illegitimate occupation. The Bushies continue not to listen to any voices of moderation and continue down a path that leads to more dead Americans, more hatred of the US and decreased safety for everyone. How can they do anything else when they may have to admit that they made a mistake? God forbid that His Imperial Highness admit that not all of his decisions were anything less than perfect – we wouldn’t want him to admit that he’s human.
Senator Kerry isn’t much better – he also won’t admit that Iraq was a mistake. He’s too timid to make such a controversial statement. Instead he just wants to change the window dressing but keep everything else the same.
What scares me the most, though, is the rumblings coming out of the Administration about Iran and, after his anti-Cuban porn speech in Florida, about Cuba…. That’s exactly what we need to take our minds off the problems in Iraq – a new war. It worked with Afghanistan – no one cared about that ‘old’ war once the new one began – so maybe it will work again with Iran or Cuba. Only problem with both of these countries is that their militaries haven’t been ground under the heel of a decade of sanctions or decades of war. We could still defeat either country, but at a much greater price than the cost of Iraq or Afghanistan. That is, of course, discounting the collateral damage the US would sustain due to increased insurgent activity in Iraq and increased terrorist activity.
I don’t honestly think that a war will start between now and the November elections, but I would not be in the least surprised if the Republicans start banging their war drums in an attempt to turn public opinion back to their camp. Then, once started, could the Administration back down from their rhetoric?
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| I, Robot |
| 07.22.04 (1:43 pm) [edit] |
We finally got to see [i]I, Robot[/i] tuesday evening. I'm not sure what to think about it. The Robots were cool. The rest of the visuals were pretty derivative.
As for the story line itself, it was enjoyable but not really all that difficult to figure out. I'm not a Sci-Fi purist and I don't give a damn whether or not it followed the original novel or not - hell I didn't care for so many other movies from "Interview With the Vampire" to "The Postman" so why start caring now.
What I did care about was the predictable part. I knew who the 'bad guy' was from the beginning.... but c'est la vie. Once I had it figured out, I turned off my brain, sat back and just enjoyed the movie.
So it gets points for being fun and having cool robots, loses points for being predictable and comes out about even .... all together it gets a tepid "eh."
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| The Death of a Great Show |
| 07.16.04 (9:18 am) [edit] |
One of my favorite shows, CSI, is about to die. According to [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWB...]CNN.com[/url], George Eads and Jorja Fox have been fired from the show for breach of contract.
Everyone just shot themselves in the foot. A successful show, a great cast and now they're going to have to re-work it to bring in new people.
Hopefully any replacements will work better than the cast of CSI: Miami. (It's basically the same show, but I can't watch it 'cuz I just can't get into the cast)
Of course, I think it was in danger of falling apart anyway. Now that the third concurrent CSI show is about to begin, the whole concept could go to same route as Law and Order - straight into over saturation.
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| Who Are Your Five Celebrities? |
| 07.16.04 (7:52 am) [edit] |
We are all allowed 5 Celebrities. 5 people that we have a free pass to sleep with if the opportunity arises - without repercussions from our partners..... So, my five are:
[b]1. Ewan MacGregor [/b]- not only is he tasty as hell but can sing too....
[b]2. Edward Norton[/b] - but only when he's all butched up like in 'American History X'
[b]3. Colin Farrell[/b] - slap me and call me bitch.
[b]4. Antonio Banderas[/b] - the tastiest hispanic guy of all time.
[b]5. Salma Hyack[/b] - Just to really piss off my str8 male friends.
So, have you picked your 5?
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| Just Cut It Out of My Head |
| 07.15.04 (10:52 am) [edit] |
My brain is driving my crazy today!! For the past 3 hours I've had one song running through my poor little head: [url=http://disneytickets0.tripod....]Bippity Boppity Boo[/url].
I've even tried replacing it using the usual song suspects like Conjunction Junction or the Theme song from Gilligan's Island. Nothing is working today.
It may not be time for alittle DIY brain surgery, but unless I can get it out I may find myself granting wishes to my undeserving colleagues .....
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| Keep the Constitution Free of Institutionalized Bigotry |
| 07.14.04 (12:03 pm) [edit] |
The vote in the US Senate to bring the Federal Marriage Amendment to the floor for a vote failed with only 48 of the 60 votes necessary. It is effectively dead for the year.
This is a very good thing.
Regardless of the fact that I support same-sex marriage, the Constitution of the United States is not the place to restrict the freedoms of Americans. Except for Prohibition, the Constitution has only been amended to expand civil liberties. I oppose any constitutional ban on flag burning for the same reason - we should not start down the road of restricting our own civil liberties by enshrining them in the document guaranteeing them in the first place.
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| Incredibly Useful Swedish Lesson |
| 07.14.04 (10:05 am) [edit] |
I learned a very important word today in Swedish:
[i]kissnödig[/i] - in desparate need of taking a piss.
I learned this on what's sure to become a new favorite blog: [url=http://www.francisstrand.blog...]How to learn Swedish in 1000 difficult lessons[/url]
(does my enjoyment of all things Swedish make me a Svenskaphile?)
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| Express Your Depression Through Fashion |
| 07.14.04 (6:36 am) [edit] |
Why wait to let a potential boyfriend discover your Manic/Depressive tendancies on his own? Now, with a little help from our friends at [url=http://www.cafeshops.com/cp/b...]Cafe Press[/url] you can express your inner self-loathing in a direct yet sexy way.
[b]The I Hate Myself Thong[/b]
That's right kids, it's the 21st Century. That means that the well informed gay guy can still empbrace his inner drama queen while still looking tasty enough to keep your trick hot and interested.
Now available in white and white
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| Does the Administration Live on Another Planet? |
| 07.13.04 (7:51 am) [edit] |
Am I insane or does the Bush Administration and portions of the Republican Party live on a different planet than I do? In the past few days, every time I turn around it seems they are doing or saying something that runs contrary to what rest of the political world is saying and what common sense would dictate.
Case in point: the [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPO...]Federal Marriage Amendment[/url]. In poll after poll, as an issue, gay marriage doesn’t register as a priority to most Americans. But, the Senate Leadership, with the blessing of the White House, have stopped work on budget bills in favor of debate on an Amendment that even they say they are over 20 votes short of passing (which means they don’t even have all Senate Republicans on board). Even Lynne Cheney has said that this isn’t an issue for the Federal government to address. So, they’re trying to make an issue that isn’t a priority to many people into a wedge issue for the Presidential campaign. Why? Aren’t there enough divisive issues already?
They are looking into possible protocols around [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPO...]delaying the Election due to terrorist attacks[/url]. Federal elections have never been delayed. All this does is incite fears of political coups. How many people, both liberal and conservative, are going to see an election delay as anything other than an attempt by the Bushies to hold onto power?
Yesterday came news that the President will not be addressing the [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPO...]NAACP’s national Convention[/url] this year. They try to portray the NAACP’s leadership as being hostile to the administration when they’ve done nothing but avoid communicating with the minority group. In an election year as tight as this one, one would think they would be trying to get people to vote for them – not push them away just because they have the wrong skin tone.
Then comes the issues of [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPO...]Security[/url] and [url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPO...]pre-war intelligence[/url]. A majority of Americans do not feel safer and a majority believe that we had faulty intelligence prior to going to war with Iraq. Regarding our security – if people do not feel safe, then just insisting that things are better while releasing unfounded terror warnings is counterproductive. The same goes for pre-war intelligence – if a majority of people (including from your own party) believes the intelligence was faulty, then saying it was good over and over will not change their minds. Both of these issues could be handled by admitting the war was based on faulty data – but it was supplied by George Tenet’s CIA and we all know that Tenet is a Clinton appointee …
So, (and here’s a little paranoia talking) have they just started to panic so that they’ve lost their way or do they have some other card up their sleeves that will ensure they ‘win’ the election whether or not they actually win …..
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| Just what Do I Have on This Blog? |
| 07.12.04 (7:08 am) [edit] |
I was looking to where different people are finding this blog from .... while I like that I keep getting google hits on searches for "[url=httP://djjoshgram.com/]DJ Josh Gram[/url] " (who is a friend and a fantastic DJ and needs to be worshipped by everyone) ... I'm really surprised and confused that I show an increasing number of hits directly from Nudecelebblogs.com ....
Just what kind of pics do I have here? I must have misplaced them, but now I'll have to decided what I should have here ..... hmmm .. how about a nude Colin Farrell? Edward Norton from 'American History X'? Mark Hoppus from Blink 182? Russell Crowe? There are just too many possiblilities ....
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| I'm Melting! Melting! What a World! What a World! |
| 07.12.04 (6:47 am) [edit] |
This past Saturday afternoon it was only about 1000 degrees in the shade here in Texas. (Ok, that’s not fair, it was only about 890 but the heat index put it up over 1000.) The plan for the day was to just lay around being lazy for a few hours followed by the obligatory weekend housecleaning.
Just a little before 4pm, the power suddenly went off. My first thought, of course, was “did I forget to pay a bill?” (well, that was my second thought. My first one was more along the lines of “Fuck! What was that?”) While trying to get through to TXU Energy, my neighbor came out and asked if I lost power too … so scratch the not paying idea. According to the electric company, there was no power outage in our area reported – then (second call) there was a minor outage – followed by (third call) there was problem with a transformer in our neighborhood.
The power was off until around 11:45 that night. I have to give the field crew credit, they busted their asses in our alley getting everything back up, but they ended up changing out 3 transformers before we got power back. I learned some important things – 1) My body is way too used to air conditioning. 2) Taking a nap when it’s in the upper 80’s inside isn’t all that relaxing. 3) Trying not to bitch at your partner when you’re hot and sticky isn’t always easy. 4) Even boiling Hotdogs in the dark using candles and flashlights for light isn’t all that easy.
Last night I was talking to another neighbor. He told me that he called TXU last week complaining that his lights kept dimming on him. Last Tuesday they came out and said there was a bad transformer that needed to be changed out – and they would come do the work on Wednesday. So, either they re-scheduled it for Saturday and didn’t bother to notify anyone or they just put it off until the transformer blew all together. Either way, I was hot and cranky and my laundry still isn’t done.
But then, if that’s my biggest problem, then hurray for my side! :D
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| Spontaneous Combustion |
| 07.09.04 (12:26 pm) [edit] |
I posted this earlier this week, but once again for posterity can't hurt.
Circuit DJ Josh Gram will be in Dallas spinning at the Brick on Sunday July 11 at a Tea Dance sponsored by Boy Boy Girl Productions.
This is new party promotion group that wants to re-invigorate the Dallas night scene. Come on out and dance with us.
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| On Your Mark, Get Set ..... |
| 07.09.04 (8:47 am) [edit] |
Nominations for the new Ghoul Pool are in. The current competitors are up from 15 last time to 23 this time. Hopefully, this round will last a bit longer than the last one – which ended with the death of Marlon Brando. On the other hand, the nominations can be pretty fun .... :D
The competitors are:
Abe Vigoda (Fish from Barney Miller)
Al Lewis (Grandpa Munster)
Ayad Allawi (Prime Minister of Iraq)
B. B. King
Bea Arthur
Billy Graham
Byron Nelson
Carol Channing
Elizabeth Taylor
Henry Kissinger
Jack Nicholson
James Doohan (Scotty)
John Kenneth Galbraith (a famous Economist guy)
Kirk Douglas
Lady Bird Johnson
Lena Horne
Loretta Lynn
Mary Kate Olson
Nancy Reagan
Phyllis Diller
Pope John Paul II
Slobadan Milosavic
Zsa Zsa Gabor
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| Setback in the War on Fascism |
| 07.09.04 (7:43 am) [edit] |
[i]Published on Thursday, July 8, 2004 by the [url=www.ap.org]Associated Press[/url] [/i]
[b]Bush Prevails as House Refuses to Curb Patriot Act[/b]
by Alan Fram
WASHINGTON - The Republican-led House bowed to a White House veto threat Thursday and stood by the USA Patriot Act, defeating an effort to block the part of the anti-terrorism law that helps the government investigate people's reading habits.
The effort to defy Bush and bridle the law's powers lost by 210-210, with a majority needed to prevail. The amendment appeared on its way to victory as the roll call's normal 15-minute time limit expired, but GOP leaders kept the vote open for 23 more minutes as they persuaded about 10 Republicans who initially supported the provision to change their votes.
"Shame, shame, shame," Democrats chanted as the minutes passed and votes were switched. The tactic was reminiscent of last year's House passage of the Medicare overhaul measure, when GOP leaders held the vote open for an extra three hours until they got the votes they needed.
"You win some, and some get stolen," Rep. C.L. Butch Otter, R-Idaho, a sponsor of the defeated provision and one of Congress' more conservative members, told a reporter.
Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., said he switched his initial "yes" vote to "no" after being shown Justice Department documents asserting that terrorists have communicated over the Internet via public library computers.
"This new world we live in is going to force us to have some constraints," Wamp said.
The effort to curb the Patriot Act was pushed by a coalition of Democrats and conservative Republicans. But they fell short in a showdown that came just four months before an election in which the conduct of the fight against terrorism will be on the political agenda.
Besides successfully fending off the effort to weaken the law, the veto threat underscored the administration's determination to strike an aggressive stance on law enforcement and terrorism.
The House has voted before to block portions of the nearly three-year-old law, but Congress has never succeeded in rolling back any of it. Yet neither has Bush succeeded in his quest to expand some of its powers.
Supporters of the law said the Patriot Act has been a valuable tool in anti-terror efforts. The law, enacted in the weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, gave the government stronger powers to conduct investigations and detain people.
"I would say, in my judgment, that lives have been saved, terrorists have been disrupted, and our country is safer" because of the act, said Rep. Porter Goss, R-Fla., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and a man President Bush is considering to be the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Otter and Rep. Bernard Sanders, I-Vt., led the effort to block one section of the law that lets authorities get special court orders requiring book dealers, libraries and others to surrender records such as purchases and Internet sites visited on a library computer. They contended the provision undermines civil liberties and threatens to let the government snoop into the reading habits of innocent Americans.
"We are all in that together," Sanders, one of Congress' most liberal lawmakers, said of the anti-terror effort. "In the fight against terrorism, we've got to keep our eyes on two prizes: the terrorists and the United States Constitution."
The House voted last summer to block so-called "sneak and peek" searches the law allows without the target's knowledge and with warrants delivered afterward, but the provision never became law. Otter abandoned a similar amendment Thursday after it was ruled out of order for procedural reasons.
Thursday's showdown was over an amendment to a $39.8 billion measure financing the Justice, Commerce and State departments for next year, which passed, 397-18. The Senate has yet to write its version of the bill.
The House vote came amid Bush administration warnings of an increased risk of attacks this summer and fall because terrorists hope to disrupt the November's elections.
Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., read a letter from the Justice Department stating that "as recently as this past winter and spring, a member of a terrorist group closely affiliated with al-Qaida" had used Internet services at a public library. The letter mentioned no specifics, Wolf said.
"If we can stop what took place in my area," said Wolf, whose district is near the Pentagon, a Sept. 11 target, "then I want to stop that, because we've gone to enough funerals."
Critics of the Patriot Act argued that even without it, investigators can get book store and other records simply by obtaining subpoenas or search warrants. Those traditional investigative tools are harder to get from grand juries or courts than orders issued under the Patriot Act, which do not require authorities to show probable cause.
"We don't want tyranny," said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.
According to a list read by a House clerk, lawmakers switching their votes from "yes" to "no" included GOP Reps. Michael Bilirakis of Florida, Rob Bishop of Utah, Tom Davis of Virginia, Jack Kingston of Georgia, Marilyn Musgrave of Colorado, Nick Smith of Michigan, Thomas Tancredo of Colorado, and Wamp.
Some Democrats switched from "no" to "yes," including Robert Bud Cramer of Alabama, Rodney Alexander of Louisiana, and Brad Sherman of California
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| Dancing in Dallas |
| 07.08.04 (8:46 am) [edit] |
[url=http://www.djjoshgram.com]DJ Josh Gram[/url] is back in Dallas again this weekend. He will be spinning at the Brick on July 11th from 1pm to 6pm.
It will be a fun afternoon of dancing before becoming responsible adults again before monday morning. :D
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| 'Tis a Puzzlement |
| 07.08.04 (8:18 am) [edit] |
It’s really bugging me.
Over the past few years, when I’ve sent out invitations for some event or another to various friends, some of them either RSVP or ask for more details through Gilbert instead of me. (this has only been an off and on again thing – just something that occurred enough to notice)
I sent out an invitation to friends this week and had a couple instances of RSVP emails going to Gilbert. Last night, one of the guys I invited (and was having a related conversation with) called, asked me to pass the phone on to Gilbert, then asked him questions and for more details on the conversation he and I were having. Now, at work this week, I had a vendor respond to one of my inquiries by answering my email and sending it to one of the guys I originally cc:’ed without copying me on his response.
So far this week, it’s happened four times.
Is their something about me that makes me invisible? Am I just someone that doesn’t give straight answers? It’s never really bothered me before – as it’s ever been an occasional thing – but it really bugs me right now.
If it was just a personal life thing, I’d assume that my friends look at Gilbert and I as a single entity so that telling one it the same as tell us both. But what about in the workplace? Am I allowing my insecurities to run rampant or is there something about my character that I need to address?
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| Presidential Election Oversight |
| 07.02.04 (11:59 am) [edit] |
The best part of this story for me is that the Representative making the announcement is MY Representative - The second best part will be listening to the conservatives blow a fuse over it ....
[i]Published on Friday, July 2, 2004 by the [url=http://www.afp.com/english/ho...]Agence France Presse[/url] [/i]
[b]US Lawmakers Request UN Observers for November 2 Presidential Election[/b]
WASHINGTON - Several members of the House of Representatives have requested the United Nations to send observers to monitor the November 2 US presidential election to avoid a contentious vote like in 2000, when the outcome was decided by Florida.
Recalling the long, drawn out process in the southern state, nine lawmakers, including four blacks and one Hispanic, sent a letter Thursday to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan asking that the international body "ensure free and fair elections in America," according to a statement issued by Texas representative Eddie Bernice Johnson, who spearheaded the effort.
"As lawmakers, we must assure the people of America that our nation will not experience the nightmare of the 2000 presidential election," she said in the letter.
"This is the first step in making sure that history does not repeat itself," she added after requesting that the UN "deploy election observers across the United States" to monitor the November, 2004 election.
The lawmakers said in the letter that in a report released in June 2001, the US Commission on Civil Rights "found that the electoral process in Florida resulted in the denial of the right to vote for countless persons."
The bipartisan commission, they stressed, determined "that the 'disenfranchisement of Florida's voters fell most harshly on the shoulders of black voters' and in poor counties." Both groups vote predominantly Democratic in US elections.
The commission also concluded, the lawmakers added, that "despite promised nationwide reforms (of the voting system) ... adequate steps have not been taken to ensure that a similar situation will not arise in 2004 that arose in 2000."
Thirty-six days after the November 7, 2000 presidential election, after several state court interventions and vote recounts in numerous Florida counties, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of Republican George W. Bush, awarding him all of Florida's 25 electoral votes.
The ruling tipped the balance against Democratic contender and then vice president Al Gore , who with 267 electoral votes lost to Bush's 271, only one more than the minimum 270 needed to clinch the presidential election.
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| Ghoul Pool - the results? |
| 07.02.04 (9:05 am) [edit] |
I just just heard a rumor that Marlon Brando died. If so, then we have a ghoul pool winner. If not, then someone's spreading vile rumors and needs to be shipped off to Abu Graib for getting the pool members all overly stimulated.
The topic came up just about 10 minutes ago and I can't find confirmation one way or the other yet - the only thing I found were stories that he's broke and ready to die.....
It's probably too soon to start up a new round of celebrity bidding but I still have dibs on Pope JPII
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| Houston Pride Weekend |
| 07.02.04 (8:36 am) [edit] |
There’s a pattern forming here. The last time I went to Houston for a weekend it took me about a week to feel like a human again and write up my adventures. Surely it’s not a sign of me getting old – just a sign of universe telling me that Houston is a strange place. It was a very odd weekend.
We left on our adventure Friday afternoon – Gilbert, me and Connie that is. Its been raining in Texas off and on (more on than off) for the past month. On the way down there, we got rained on 4 or 5 times. One of them included a period of hydro-planing while being passed by a semi… (fun, fun, fun) The rest of the weekend included lots of dancing but also hanging out at Tommy and Kirby’s booth at the Pride festival selling their watches and viewing the drama when Tommy and Kirby got lost after picking up Dawna Montel and showing up an hour late for the Saturday after hours event …
Some of the other tidbits include Pat Hodges singing at the after parade event, stopping at scary gas stations in rural east Texas, sex store window shopping at the festival, Kinney drama, the police stopping traffic on 610 in the middle of the night, getting cruised by bears at the festival ….. the list goes on and on ….
I had a hell of a lot of fun and now I’m going to have a nice quiet 4th of July weekend. The quiet part is as much because the big party this weekend in Dallas got moved and now lots of people aren’t going to go – so why bother paying cover for something that’s going to be lame?
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All About Geoffrey Snyder
I am a 40yo guy living in Dallas, Texas with my partner of 18 years, Gilbert, and our puppy, Rex. I'm both a fun loving, happy guy in my everyday life and a loud mouthed Progressive.
I love to travel and meet people. My goal in life is to go everywhere and meet everyone.
So, pull up a chair, make yourself at home, enjoy my mental wanderings and feel free to drop me a line to tell me what you think...
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