Feeling safe while flying?

The FAA released the recording from the cockpit of the Northwest Airlines pilots who overshot the Minneapolis, Minnesota, airport last month. The pilots told air traffic control that they had dropped from radio contact because of "cockpit distraction."

WOW...insert appropriate or non appropriate joke here ____

Read the article HERE to see who the men are that are in charge of getting 144 people to their destination safely. So what can possibly distract these men so much that they flew over a 100 miles out of the way? I think if you're in charge of actual lives, you should be more on your game and not really getDistracted.

However, us passengers have to basically strip naked before security, take off our shoes and basically get treated like prisoners. I can't bring a frigging nail clipper or anything over 4 ounces onto the plane, but it's OK for the pilot to get distracted in the cockpit? I think I can do a lot less damage with a pair of little scissors and a bottle of water (unless of course I was MacGyver) than these poor excuses for pilots.

Consumerism

On this Thanksgiving, many people have left the dinner table early just to get some deals on retail items for the next upcoming holiday...Christmas. Kmart, Best Buy, Macy's are all a part of the continuously growing consumerism that is continuing to take over our society, no matter how grueling the process of getting gifts may be. Some people feel a rush, others just desperate for that extra couple of dollars off the merchandise them must get. The mindset is clear: must finish Christmas shopping as fast as possible, making sure not to forget anyone and get the best gifts possible to show I CARE (with the gift). Somewhere during the process, actual thought is lost and all that remains is a robotic superhuman that will do anything to get the last iphone.

The average person is spending around $600 for the holidays and mostly putting it on credit card, furthering their dept! Is that the plan for "helping the recession"? If a news report has to tell us how to shop, by making a list and trying to pay cash, then we are in serious trouble.
Go HERE and buy THIS, but be carful, you may get into dept.

They tell us what to do, when to do it and How much. Here is a rundown of who is going to be open for your convenience.



It's just amazing to me how everything in our society revolves around money and consumerism. Material objects are starting to replace what is really important. Why is it that we NEED all of this stuff? Mega stores all competing for our attention and our money and we blindly fall directly into the trap set for us. People will run, grab, trample and turn plain ugly to get what they want. Fights will break out, there may even be bloodshed or death, such as the incident last year.

It would be nice if people could really save their money by making a gift or doing something special with the people you love. Somehow that's not good enough anymore. The more we get, the more we WANT, not need. Besides, if we were all just chilling out, making gifts and spending time together, who would be out there SPENDING??? I guess that's the real problem, we have to fuel the economy by completely screwing ourselves into a world of dept.

I can't believe this still happens

While reading the news this morning I came upon this news article that made me feel as though I was reading the obscene actions of yesteryear.

Somali woman stoned for adultery.

It's interesting to actually hear about this happening now. It puts a lot of theories about social behavior and progress into perspective. I recently went to a discussion on Darwinism relating to social media and how it is affecting the evolution of man. What really defines a more cultured and well behaved society? Well, for one, not stoning women to death after she gave birth to a still born baby.

In the discussion, the professor pointed out that 3rd world countries are just like us, but about 80 years ago. Does this excuse that kind of behavior? I guess doing and seeing wrong are in the eyes of the beholder. So they do things differently, who are we to judge? Who says that's it's the "wrong" way? We do...because burning and stoning people is inhumane and disgusting, right? What if you were brainwashed to think and believe something else? Somehow these people all gather around to watch this spectacle, so their society must not think that torturing a women over having sex with an UNMARRIED man.

That brainwashing happens everywhere, here in America, the main focus is politics and religion, church and state that has never been separated. Yet we are the more "evolved" society. Maybe everyone is wrong, but that's just speculation, an opinion, my free will exploring whatever my semi-brainwashed mind thinks.

Here is some of the article.

A 20-year-old woman divorcee accused of committing adultery in Somalia has been stoned to death by Islamists in front of a crowd of about 200 people.

A judge working for the militant group al-Shabab said she had had an affair with an unmarried 29-year-old man.

He said she gave birth to a still-born baby and was found guilty of adultery. Her boyfriend was given 100 lashes.

It is thought to be the second time a woman has been stoned to death for adultery by al-Shabab.

The group controls large swathes of southern Somalia where they have imposed a strict interpretation of Islamic law which has been unpopular with many Somalis.

'Lenient'

According to reports from a small village near the town of Wajid, 250 miles (400km) north-west of the capital, Mogadishu, the woman was taken to the public grounds where she was buried up to her waist.

She was then stoned to death in front of the crowds on Tuesday afternoon.

The judge, Sheikh Ibrahim Abdirahman, said her unmarried boyfriend was given 100 lashes at the same venue.

Under al-Shabab's interpretation of Sharia law, anyone who has ever been married - even a divorcee - who has an affair is liable to be found guilty of adultery, punishable by stoning to death.

An unmarried person who has sex before marriage is liable to be given 100 lashes.

"Stilleto Stoners"

Now this is something I want to see, a controversial topic in the morning, geared to all those running off to the 9-5 grind. The Today show had a great segment on successful business women who smoke marijuana, regularly. Instead of coming home and taking down an entire bottle of wine, in these stressful times, women are now smoking pot.

Check out the video. This is the first time I've seen a conversation about marijuana and not have someone opposing it.

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/33087077#33087077

Personally, I think it's a very interesting topic and I'm happy to see that something as big and respected as The Today show is addressing it. Could this mean that perhaps we're heading towards a more mature outlook, a smarter economic plan... a better direction? I sure hope so. The Government could be taxing the people Even MORE! Maybe that will help repay some of that debt...

The Laundromat

While doing my laundry today, I was witness to some true hateful hostility. Here is how it played out:

A man wanted to use a bin and approached a woman around the bins.

Man: Excuse me, are you using this?
Woman: WHAT??
Man: I was just wondering if you were using this.
Woman: STOP bothering me, i don't CARE.
Man: I was just trying to be polite

He walks away with obvious disgust, shaking his head wondering why being polite should illicitness an attitude like that. At this point I am smiling, completely amused that someone could be so, well, YUCKY.

Then the woman proceeds to say, "why the fuck is everyone so happy?" Then left with a humph.

I told the man that he shouldn't be discouraged and to continue to be nice to people, even if some react like assholes.

To the man: he made me smile! And it makes me happy when others are happy. Some people just really need to chill out and not take laundry or life too seriously.

Michael Jackson RIP video

This is sad but true. Most people all of a sudden love someone when they have died (ie. Michael Jackson). Even if they hated him while he was alive, they celebrate his life in death. That's bogus. Hypocritism at it's fullest.

What this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVACUjHn6yU

The Simpsons - Marge Discovers the internet

One of my favorite episodes of The Simpsons is when Marge discovers the internet. It's such a time encapsulated theme that it will showcase what our society was for many years to come. I still watch and learn from this "American Family" drawn up and watched for over 20 years, one of the longest running shows ever.

I remember doing a case study on The Simpsons in a psychology class during my last year in High School. Watching The Simpsons for school? Now that's what I was talking about. Not only is the show is entertaining, humorous and enjoyable to watch, but each episode is a satire wrapped in a metaphor directed right at our society. The show openly mocks everything going on in the current day and society.

The particular episode shows Marge become an internet addict (i know how she feels!!). After waiting for an email from her friends and not receiving one, she begins to press refresh on the browser, hoping something has JUST come in. She didn't get any new emails, but she says, "the only thing that keeps changing is the banner!". Marge then sees a banner she likes, and clicks on it! This is showing the actual interaction with the banner, making her one of the millions who are tracked by their interests. This leads her to create her own character (an avatar) and join a community of other gamers, playing and interacting withing a game...."Earthland Realms".

The Simpsons are our comic relief, a way to mock and laugh at society while trying to laugh at ourselves. Each episode is filled with lessons to be learned and to be a reminder of our current events, a witness to ourselves. I encourage everyone to watch and try to dissect what they are REALLY saying. It's all about us.

Space Walk

Sometimes I get extremely nervous at the way the way we are progressing. The economy is falling, the environment is changing and the world will always be at war. I try to look at the bright side and remind myself that there is always balance, so where there is war, there has to be peace as well. In our advancements, we have just completed the first spacewalk to fix the Hubble telescope so we can see further into space than ever before.

I can't even imagine being an astronaut, hanging out in the middle of space connected by only a thin umbilical cord to another object just floating in space. It must be both breathtaking and frightening to be looking at Earth as if it were something distant, rather than the only planet you know to be home. If you think you feel small on earth, chew on that for a while.

Maybe this is how to get a job

Here I was scrutinizing over my resume and cover letter wondering what would be the kicker that would land me that perfect job. I search everyday on job boards, forums, and websites on how to "make yourself stick out". I know I'm unique and have a lot of great qualities, but how do you make that come through a stack of papers (or emails rather) and make the employer even call you back?

After changing the format of my resume, writing long thought out cover letters, NOTHING. Years of not getting that job. Some of them, just a job, but a couple of them through the years have been a job I really wanted. However, I just couldn't get to the finish line.

This morning, as part of my daily ritual, I sit down with my coffee to search for jobs and now the additional research necessary to do on blogs and social media sites. These blogs offer something very valuable, almost priceless, for FREE! INFORMATION, real, unadulterated, and mostly honest info that everyone can use. If you have a problem, most likely someone out there has the same thing. These are real people speaking their mind, finally exercising their freedom of speech and making themselves heard. What a country!

Now on to the real issue at hand. On one of the blogs I read, unemploymentality, I saw an interested story on how a man got his dream job. Now, this was the advise I was looking for! Always getting excited about everything, so hopefully that it's going to work out, I dive into the article thinking, now i'm definitely going to get a job. After reading the article, it left me wondering what people are really doing these days to get work and how many of us are out there. (just 1/2 million jobs were lost in April ALONE) People are going to start to get desperate in their job hunt. So many people in need and so few jobs. Some people, like the man in the article may get cute and smart with just a touch of cunning with it, but what I'm worried about is what the people that aren't at the very top of the intellectual food chain will react.

I'm having trouble deciding whether I think what this man did to get the job was morally correct or not. The goal was achieved, he got the job. He did it with research and wit, but in doing so, he deceived some people, but it didn't hurt anyone. So all good right? In this day and age, we're back to survival of the fittest and the smart/strong will prevail, but it's a rough world out there. People will paint their faces to show you and the world as they secretly plot to step all over you. I only hope we remain a civil society in our economic downfall.

Lots of luck to the unemployed!

Are there any loopholes left???

There is no way you can beat the system, no matter how hard you try. It's a constant catch 22, an endless circle going round and round. You get laid off, wrestle with finances and health insurance options and then decided the COBRA option is too expensive, so option B, suffer and have no coverage at all.

Months go by and the government introduces a stimulus bailout plan., which take a huge load off and actually makes insurance affordable again! Everyone rejoices knowing their families and themselves could have health insurance again at a reasonable price.

WAIT!!! WHAT'S THAT???

You are now informed that the months you were "not insured" must be paid before you can begin coverage in the present time. So even though you're getting a discounted rate, you have to pay for the time you didn't even have insurance, time that has gone! Now this is the past really coming back to haunt you.

BOOOYYAAA! There is no way around this if you want health insurance. The government collects again and you're stuck paying the "discounted rate" and then some! I guess the house always wins.

Genitic Alterations

If babies are made in a test tube, then implanted into the mother, born via cesarean section, are they real? That baby would have never been conceived because it was not meant to be. If a women can't get pregnant, I think it's a sign of natural progression, and they were not chosen to reproduce.

Adopt! It's so hot right now. No more fake babies by the dozen!

Picture it: The new, GEN FAKE-produced babies(most of which have a body double, or multiple)will grow up and all look the same, and probably be retarded. An army of 8 over there, a smiling Christan family of 19, a mom and dad plus 12, and they're all looking to bank on the next reality show or media circus.

I believe the children are are future, teach them well and let them lead the way....

Whitney Houston made that song popular in 1986. I think she had some insight then, WAY before the crack. She knew what was up, we just didn't listen, we never listen.

Swine Flu 2009

Now, whose idea was this? With all that is going on in the economy and world right now, people are going to focus on the newest craze, a flu pandemic. It seems that the media grabs on to what people will be most afraid of and exploit the shit out of it. All the hypochondriacs out there have even more reason to set up camp next to next fox five news headline:THE WAR AGAINST THE SWINE FLU. Whenever there is a problem, bring the war against it!

This flu pandemic makes us realize how vulnerable we really are to any kind of spreadable, harmful substance. In times of war, or any time at all, it's difficult not to let the mind wonder to the possibles of biological warfare and how the human race can even survive that. If you think some people are ugly now, imagine the possibilities with some harsh genetic alterations.

I remember seeing a movie called "Threads" in high school about nuclear war and the after effects. Since it was high school, we watched it over several weeks I believe and at the end, i recall sitting there scared stiff. My palms were sweaty and panic was setting in as the realization of that movie became so real in my mind. Ever since then, I await the day where it will come true.

That is the kind of news we need to be aware of. How can we possibly control a "natural illness"? We should focus more on the problems already created, attempt to fix those rather than tyring to stop hurricanes from coming and lava to stop flowing. I think we're having a hard time playing god and understanding what is still natural verses man made.

I hate you Retractable leash

walking down park on my tasti delite ritual from my sisters for our "custom snickers", one of my worst fears are realized....

i see it all unfold...

Woman + dog + extend-a-leash = falling on face.

Classic case scenario: dog is peeing on flowers on the side of the sidewalk while the old lady walks ahead, assuming all is safe since her dog is connected to a cord 20 feet away in any direction. She decides to round the corner while her dog is still near the flowers, creating a perfect trip wire for anyone walking by, which happened to me this time (like many other times).

Of course I see this opportunity to make a polite statement to this woman, surely she has heard this before. I can't be the only victim. I approach the scenario with the common oblivious manner that most new yorkers do and tripped over the wire, i mean, leash, creating a slight pull for both the dog and owner. Only then did this women realize that her dog was around the block. WTF??@#% I could have bashed my face in as she was carelessly walking down the street!

Why is it that people need a 20 foot leash to walk their dog on a 5 foot sidewalk? NYC is crowded with bustling, inconsiderate people who only look forward. I call that Tunnel-vision. On the upper east side, I guess people call it something else, stuck up bitches.

I have always hated these type of leashes that are both unfair to the dog and to the people walking around. This is also one of the major reasons I can't roller blade around the city anymore, because their dogs needed to roam 20 feet ahead! That is simply unacceptable.

Laws are made about the stupidest things sometimes. I think we should add this to the list and have these menacing, dangerous items out of the market and off our streets!

This is not ok

Climactic events are occurring all over the world as Americans watch from the sidelines or a very small foggy porthole. The media is mostly to blame for our lack of information and our very skewed worldly news view. While Korea launches missiles, huge ice shelves break in Antarctica, and President Obama unleashes the biggest financial bailout plan ever, we Americans stay safe under our blissful ignorance just knowing less.

By controlling what we see and hear, the media (and who ever controls them) has the power to alter what we are exposed to as a society. Knowing that everyone watches TV, and making sure we're all on the same page, the media and government can control what we see at all times. Starting June 12, 2009, all TVs are "going digital", which means constant monitoring of what you watch. Yet another tool of control?

You would think that world news would be important, but NO! keep us sheltered, like a child in a bubble, with no worries because the government is going to take care of us. So lets just believe what they tell us and worry about more important things like stolen puppy!
Save the puppy, save the world!

At least it was a happy ending and involved a really cute puppy, a bit of the bitter sweets in life.

The McDonaldization of ART

What is it about something unique and original that appeals to me so much? It's a one of a kind, a diamond in the ruff, something that can not be replicated. I guess I always felt like I was different from the rest, so why shouldn't my art reflect that? Going digital and moving further away from fine art is like joining the herd, doing what "they" tell you and how. Making countless identical reproductions, each printout carefully calibrated, calculated and customized to do produce the same result, every time.

Part of the art world (and of course our society) has gone though a process called McDonaldization, basically, you want to know exactly what you're going to get as fast as possible.

Ritzer highlighted four primary components of McDonaldization:
Efficiency, Calculability, Predictability, and Control. His book, "The McDonaldization of Society" does an excellent job of explaining how we are progressing or regressing, how ever you would like to look at it. For me, there has to be a balance somewhere in the equation, one of my beliefs being the yin and yang theory, there is good and bad in everything. As we hurry along wanting quantity over quality, we lose something in the process...VALUE.

So why is it so wrong for me to want the quality over the quantity? I've been fighting that question for a long time and now I just don't know anymore. If you can't beat them, join them...

MOO!