Ok Well I've updated again. There's a new picture menu and a few new pics. There will be bits and pieces filtering in over the next few days.

Next!

Right, so I finished my studio project and now it's on to a paper that's due tomorrow. My studio project was okay... the school's director liked it. My studio professor was less than impressed, but then he's a prick so I expect that from him. I have a hundred pages of reading or so to get through today... paper tonight. Tomorrow I have to write computer code for a class and then finish my portfolio for Wednesday. Lots to do! Lots to do! Talk to you later...

High on life... and sleep deprivation...

Ha! I've been sleeping a couple hours a day at random times throughout the day for so long I'm not sure what day it is! I can't wait until this month is over! I'm delirious and have the giggles... those who've seen me late at night at school know what I mean... it's kinda fun... heh... no reason to post this... just trying not to do work that's due in 12 hours. Here goes...

Grad Student Weight Loss Program!

So I figure I could try to market the ultimate "get fit, get thin" diet... grad school! As testament, I submit the pictures under "links" to your right. No, really though, I got pictures put up for you. They're there to the right under "links." Guess I said that already.

Did you know...

The US Supreme Court ruled in the 1886 case of Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad that corporations are fictional persons, legal persons, and moral persons and have the rights of an individual (natural) person. Corporations, since, have set about pursuing political agendas fit to their cause as though they were a natural person.

This is not an idea new to the United States.

In the 1930's, an Italian dictator named Benito Mussolini came up with a concept he called "corporatism:" the merging of corporate and state interests. He later changed the name to Fascism.

Dead to the world...

Well, 3 projects and a paper due in the next 10 days... studio project, class project, class paper, and portfolio. For those trying to get ahold of me, I may not return phone calls until February... sorry... you understand. Things are going fairly well, I suppose. I've been working my ass off here... it'll all slow down a bit soon enough. Until Febraury, check here for updates and email is still always the best way to get ahold of me. Here goes this month's home stretch...

Does anyone read this thing?

Just curious...

So school is back to full speed... well past it, in fact. My studio professor is an uptight little man with something to prove... he really doesn't like me. He came to my desk, in fact, the first day and started an argument. I don't know how I'll deal with him... nothing I do appeases him and I, unfortunately, am in a position where he controls my financial aid next year. I have no doubt that I can perform above the standard in my other classes and recieve the grade I deserve... I also have no doubt that whatever I recieve in studio will not be the grade I deserve. It's tough beginning a semester knowing all of this... makes you really not want to do the work knowing that it will all be for naught. So it goes...

My portfolio and grad school application are due on February 1st... my portfolio is started but nowhere near done... all of the rest of my paperwork is basically taken care of. I'm tired... I'm weary... since school began last semester it's been all work and no play... almost to an excessive level. That's the nice thing about being here though... no distractions.

As most of you know, I've been looking for somewhere to go for the summer because I can't work while on a student visa... well I found out yesterday that I can apply for an exception to the visa policy under the "destitute student" clause! All I have to do is prove that I'm broke (empty bank statement) and that my family can't support me and they will let me have a work visa! If you can't tell, this is outstanding news! Now I can find a job here and stay for the summer... I was going to have to deal with moving on a zero budget and it wasn't going to be fun. I'll travel next year when I have money but for now I'll stick around here and see what job I can find to squeak through the summer. Now I have something else to deal with... and I'd much rather it be this than moving! Unfortunately, that means I won't be back in the states this year... working a job for 4 months isn't going to afford me any time or money for travel so maybe next year. I'll come back eventually... unless the Republicans steal another election... in which case I'm considering Switzerland, England, or... well, anywhere off the continent.

Canada is having an election this week I think... they were not satisfied with the job their Prime Minister was doing so they elected to throw him out and hold elections for a new leader. Problem is, their conservative party is getting alot of funding and press time, but no one can figure out how because not that many people really support them. Answer? American money pumped into the Canadian system so that the Bush-friendly candidate can win. It's already been said that if the conservatives take office they will join the desert debacle we've created. If the conservatives take power they are going to open up more oil to the states (Canada is our #1 supplier of oil. We drill it there, pump it all the way back to the states, mark up the price and then sell it back to the Canadians at a higher price than what we pay... and it's their oil!). Canadians are outraged and rightfully so.

So yes, if this regime manages to plant another republican president Canada is not far enough away. That's a story for another day though. Hopefully, after Bush blatantly sidestepped the law (a law written to allow the president a means to legally sidestep the law, I might mention) with his wiretap funny business, they'll find enough evidence to finally impeach him. It's only being whispered right now, but there are multiple law suits being filed against the government and there is an official investigation underway. He broke the law... bad... and is trying to justify it. Hopefully things will be all better soon. I wouldn't mind coming back to the states sometime...

I have a paper to write tonight so I'm going to go get on that. Really, let me know if you read this. Drop a line and say hey or something... I'm not really sure if I'm talking to myself or not. Then again, I talk to myself alot so it wouldn't be that big a deal. Until next time...

Can't say I'm not dedicated!

I just thought you guys might get a kick out of this... it's 7:30 Sunday night and with windchill it's -20 degrees fahrenheit outside. Tomorrow it's going to be -30 fahrenheit. Here comes winter... finally! I was worried the White House might have called off winter for the western hemisphere to celebrate record SUV sales! Whew... close one there.

Interesting trivia... Ottawa was Canada's 3rd choice for capital. It's first two were rejected because they were too vulnerable to American attack... too close.

What do you think?

I talk alot about what I believe in... I see many things in this world that are right, wrong, beautiful, abbhorent, forgotten, new, and wonderful and I am passionate about sharing these things with other people. I'm curious though as to how you see things in this world? How do you feel about life? Do you think politics are important? What about the environment? How about the quality of life for people outside of your town, your state, or your country? When you get full-on into life do these things have any precedence? What is important to you in your life? Am I just young and full of that same fire that has filled young men since the beginning of written history? I'd like to know... what do you believe in?

Grades are in...

Well I received my first semester's grades and I got an A- in studio, an A in Design Economics, and an A+ in Theatre Workshop. So, if I can manage to pull an A average again this semester I get a 2/3 tuition reduction next year! Here goes everything...

I'd like to thank my mother...

I'd like to thank my wonderful mother for teaching me to cook. Thanks to this wonderful woman I can make meals from empty cupboards. If you're the mother of a young man, do him a huge favor... teach him to cook. My mom did and I thank her every time I make dinner... like tonight. I made red beans and rice... some kind of unleavened frybread (yeah that corn flour worked mom... no baking powder... tastes good.) Oh yeah and chocolate cake. Anyway, thanks mom.

What they say...

I was asked recently what the two parties' arguments on global warming are. Essentially, the Bush administration's "position" can only be called "opposed." They don't have arguments against. For the longest time, the white house simply ignored the issue... quite literally they just said "Nope, this is not happening. Finally, they've admitted that global warming is, in fact, happening but that the causes can't be known. In other words, they've adopted the same defense as cigarette makers: you can't prove it was us. Their position has been irrational, unreal, and absolutely unsupportable, though, and so they have taken to lying to the American people as their only alternative. They put a former oil lobbiest with no scientific training or background in charge of editing the scientific reports of the government's study on global warming.

So in 2001, 180 countries came together in Kyoto, Japan for the writing of what came to be known as the Kyoto Accord. This agreement calls for the "stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system." Basically, it says we have to stop polluting because our actions are affecting our climate. 156 out of 191 other countries in the world representing over 2/3 of the world's population have ratified the treaty and it came into effect in February 2005 with the cooperation of the Russian government. In 2001, the United States quite literally left the negoting table mid-conference, turning its back on the global effort to lessen the damage we do because it was too expensive. Last month, the world again came together, this time in Montreal, to discuss the next step after Kyoto expires in 2012. Again, the US negotiator to the conference left a day or so into the conference, this time in a public huff. The US government insists that reducing greenhouse gasses is too expensive to fix and insists further that it is or may not be a problem in the first place.

Two-thirds of the world's population is discussing this. Yes, the representative governments of roughly two-thirds of the world's population... that's about 4 billion people for the folks keeping score at home... 4,000,000,000 people are asking the United States to please stop destroying the planet. We have less than 5% of the world's population and create roughly 33% of the world's pollution and consume 33% of the world's resources. But our government insists on taking a 10 year-old approach to the issue, literally ignoring citizens's pleas for change, scientists' warnings of bad things that will come of our current coarse, and, of course, the 4 billion people who are asking us to stop tearing the place up.

Here's a good list, put together by the Sierra Club, of the Bush regime's top ten environmental offenses.

Cheers.

My agenda...

If you haven't noticed by now, my website is frequented with news on political happenings in the US. I am not trying to manipulate your political views. What I hope is that you, my family and friends, know that I don't feed you bullshit. What I hope is that you look at my site and the issues I feel worth taking time to discuss and think for a moment about how you feel in regards to that issue. I provide links as often as possible to stories from various media sources that show you where I learn my facts. I encourage each and every one of you to post comments. I want to encourage discussion here... that's what a blog is for. My mother recently told me that she thinks about her political decisions more because of the things I tell her. That's what I want... I don't want to control your political choices, rather, I want to motivate you to learn, to research, and to find out what the facts are before you make decisions that affect millions of human beings. Since American businesses have spread to hundreds of other countries, very minor decision you make have repercussions that affect people around the world. If it's not your thing, I understand and don't worry, there are still non-political posts going up. I hope I can help people see past the tightly controlled media and learn how to access the whole story... I might as well start with my family and friends.

Don't worry, this isn't really happening...

Ottawa, Ontario has the world's longest skating rink measuring in at an impressive 7.8 km (4.5 miles). Every winter they freeze the canal that runs through town and have winter festivals and an outdoor skating rink all winter long. Generally, as I am told, the festivities begin in the beginning or middle of December... but always by christmas. Over the past several years, though, they have had to push the date back further until this year, it is January 6th and the canal is still not open.

The world is getting hotter.

Our government recently refused to participate in a conference attended in Canada by over 180 countries that addressed the impending dangers of climate change and how we, the people who live on this earth, can begin to fix this horribly irresponsible mistake we've made. To give you an idea, there are 192 countries in the world. This follows on the heels of the US literally leaving the negotiating table 4 years ago at the kyoto conference, where the world's leaders came together to agree upon lowering world emissions by 5.2% by 2012. The US is indisputably the largest polluter in the world. 180 of 192 countries are on board and hear the scientists saying that we are in trouble. The US government, however, insisits on telling you that global warming is a myth, that it is not scientifically proven, and that it is not a threat.

5 years ago Canadians skated on the ice down the street from me in December. It's gotten later every year until now, ehen it is January and we still don't have solid ice.

How warm was it recently around Oklahoma? I saw the news which said it was in the 70's as they bettled wildfires. 70 degrees in the middle of January! What was January like when you were a kid? Does anyone remember your childhood being colder than now?

The world is getting hotter. Please, get informed. Do what you can. If you'd like help or information, get ahold of me and I will help point you in the right direction. I want this place to still be inhabitable for my grandkids... what do you think, guys?

Is honesty enough?

Today President Bush sat down with a table of former senior white house officials and heard their views, both in support and dissent, on the situation in Iraq. This marks another in a string of attempts by the administration to be more open and candid about the war.

It's no secret that every word that comes out of our white house is carefully scripted and measured against likely reactions before it reaches our ears. Is this latest push an attempt to appease Americans by making them feel that their government is being more honest? Is it a ploy? Is it for real? Is it enough that they are now honest with Americans about things they've been lying about consistently and on record for 5 years? Is it enough to voice honesty and open-mindedness while simultaneously staying a course that has never been sure or effective in the first place? Are we just hearing different words from our government? Is it too late for this regime to become 'honest?'

If they become honest about the war does that buy them forgiveness for their list of other crimes? If the republicans are honest with you about a situation that they had to lie to you about to get into in the first place, does that excuse the wanton fraud and money laundering engineered by Republican Congressman and House Majority leader, Tom Delay? If the republicans are more honest with you about how many decades we will maintain a 'security presence' in Iraq does that excuse the fact that our Vice President openly endorses Delay's political campaign while he is under indictment from the Texas Grand Jury for criminal acts? If the republicans admit that things aren't as good as they've been saying, does that excuse the fact that the Vice President aggressively lobbied to convince the senate to legalize torture? (By the way, the senate finally voted against torture, after much deliberation, 90-9. That's right, nine senators of the United States voted against banning torture. Lovely.)

I'm troubled by what's happening in my country today, that's news to no one. I hope all of you take a little extra time to start paying attention now to what's going on. Whether you feel like you can affect things or not, it's important to pay attention because we're nearing an election year. When the time comes, you will know more about the people involved, because I guarantee that some of the people in the news today will be presidential hopefuls.