So… 2008 comes to a close in a little over twelve hours now (CST) and while most people will be thrilled to put the bitch that is 2008 to rest I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wouldn’t miss it a little. 2008 was the year where the notion of global warming took a few on a chin, Democrats took over our government and O.J. was finally convicted. The Giants won the Super Bowl, the Phillies the World Series and the price of gas fluctuated more than Star Jones’ weight.

This year has had plenty of bad news including over 220,000 disaster related deaths world-wide and 151 US service men and women lost their lives in Afghanistan while 309 perished in Iraq. Economies around the world are in crisis thanks to economic lows not seen since the great depression while the cornerstones of the American economy, Ford, GM and Chrysler are fighting tooth and nail just to survive.

Still, with all of the horrible things that happened in the year 2008 she was also a great year to be had. 45 years after Martin Luther King Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" my fellow Americans and I elected our first African American President in Barrack Obama. We found water on Enceladus, sent the Phoenix Lander to northern Mars and the Mars Rovers have been trucking on Mars for nearly 5 years.

I could go on and on about the good and bad that 2008 brought us all but at the end of the day (and year) we’re still standing… maybe not with as much money in our retirement accounts as before but we’re still here fighting, striving and moving forward. The end of another year is always bitter-sweet to me, and 2008 is no different… okay, it may be just a tad more bitter this year seeing as I just turned 30…

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Yesterday my fellow Americans and I elected Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. Since the results came in I’ve been reading my fair share of reactions from both sides of the isle and am appalled at reactions from conservatives and liberals alike. This time should be the most amazing time to be an American yet even when we should be at our best we can’t muster a single, solitary moment of national pride. Think about it. We haven’t been able to witness a night like last night since 1992 when Bill Clinton was the last clear winner of a new Presidency.

Electing a new President is the epitome of what our great democracy stands for and should be cherished by all who live here. I’ll try to sum it up like John McCain did so eloquently last night in his concession speech; Regardless of what party you are affiliated with or who you voted for we are all first and foremost, Americans. People need to realize that regardless of who has been elected to office, it is the duty of all Americans to help move this great nation forward, otherwise we will just continue to decline further into a pit of self loathing.

I didn’t vote for President-Elect Barack Obama, but I am an American who is proud of his country and even more proud of the fact that 114 million of my fellow Americans exercised their right to vote yesterday… a right that has been earned with the blood of brave men and women for over 232 years, including approximately 1,314,225 war-time related deaths by US military men and women in defense of this democracy. For that very reason I openly respect the opinions and views of the 63 million of my fellow Americans who did vote for Barack Obama and I’ll put my full support behind him as our next Commander and Chief.

If all Americans and their politicians would stop blaming everyone but themselves for the problems that face our country we’d get a lot further. Obama can promise all of the "change" in the world but until the American people as a whole take a proactive approach to fixing this nation nothing will be done, nothing will change. Some may think the President has total control of America but even the "chosen one" can’t change things on his own.

The only way for this country to change is for Democrats to stop being Democrats and Republicans to stop be Republicans and for Americans to start being Americans. Our finest hours were during and shortly after World War II and that was because all Americans took proactive steps to make a difference; we won’t get any better now unless we follow that generation’s lead. It is our job to guide America, not the government’s. The people running this country are there to put your wishes into motion, not to make your decisions for you.

So I ask my fellow Americans to support Obama (unlike they have Bush) because the bottom line is he’s our President (elect) and you respect the office and the burden and power it entails. If Obama isn’t all he’s cracked up to be don’t bash him the same way you bashed Bush, stand up for what you believe and and make a difference the next election cycle. Email your congressmen and hold them accountable for once, stop saying what the problems are and offer solutions. You have a voice so stop bickering like you are oppressed and use it in a proactive way for once.

Remember that this great democracy of ours is a government of the people, by the people, for the people… if you take anything from this, remember that.

Yesterday evening the Houston Police Department’s Executive Assistant Chief Martha Montalvo estimated that the new cameras will bring in revenue of $10,000,000 in 2008. That is over 133,000 tickets at 75 bucks a pop and over 2600 tickets per year per camera, or nearly eight per day. The Houston Police Department stands to make a $7,000,000 profit in 2008 off of the cameras, with half going to a general state fund and the other half going directly into their pockets. From September of 2006 until June of 2007 the cameras have brought in $3.5 million dollars in fines, not bad considering the final cameras just went up last month.

It was also divulged that the new red light cameras have an annual operating cost of $3,000,000 per year; I wonder who gets to dip their greedy hands into that huge cookie jar? Well, don’t let the city get away with highway robbery (bad pun, I know). Familiarize yourself with this map showing the location of all fifty of the picture taking gold mines so you don’t have to fork over your seventy-five hard earned bucks to the lazy bastards in city hall… or if you really want to make a difference feel free to send your city councilman or state and congressional representatives a nasty email letting them know just how you feel.

Currently listening to: Led Zeppelin - Going to California

Conspiracy theorists like those ridiculously talked about in the web-film “Loose Change” have long claimed that the fall of the two towers was due to explosives on the planes themselves along with “controlled charges” throughout the buildings… ridiculous, I know. The simple facts of the matter are nearly 25% of the vertical steel columns were lost on impact and the steel’s spray on fire coating was blown off from the force of the explosion… add thousands of gallons of jet fuel burning hot enough to fuse steel and you have a recipe for distaster.

The structural failures of the Twin Towers has been well documented and scientifically verified by independent researchers from around the world, and the study from the Purdue researchers is just another nail in the conspiracy theory coffin. In March of 2005 Popular Mechanics published an indepth article debunking the vast majority of the 9/11 myths including the jet’s having explosive “pods” attached to them as well as the “controlled explosions” which were simply the pancaking of the floors as they collapsed on top of one another.

Popular Mechanics consulted with over 300 experts and organizations in its investigation for the article and the response to the article eventually spawned an even more indepth look with the release of the book Debunking 9/11 Myths. Like the writers of Popular Mechanics the scientists and engineers of Purdue took only the math and science of the attacks into account. In the coming months the researchers are going to continue improving upon the simulations and they will eventually encompass the fall of the towers.

The researchers from Purdue are performing the research to help improve the safety of future buildings and skyscrapers, not to make a political statement… so please don’t take my discontent for the conspiracy theorists as theirs, they are doing the research to make “buildings, occupants and emergency responders safer in future emergencies.” It is a noble task that they are performing and I just wanted to make that clear, in the mean time I am just taking the chance to poke a little fun at the conspiracy theorists.

Currently listening to: Team America - America, Fuck Yeah!

Posted in News, Politics, Technology | Edit | No Comments »