Modern Human Rights

Tagged as: Political, Rant, Ridiculous, Seen-Around, The-News Apr 23

When I think of basic rights, there are certain things that come to mind. There is life, which is the right to not be killed without a just reason. There is liberty, which allows us to have the freedom to do whatever we want to. And there is the pursuit of happiness, which allows us the freedom to find the ever elusive happiness (granted of course that this doesn’t interfere with others’ rights).

In this day and age apparently people’s perceptions of human rights are changing. We are entitled to a good job (even if we do not deserve or cannot do the work), keeping our house (even when we cannot afford it), health care (even though it’s an optional service since our right to life is not an entitlement to a set number of years), and high speed internet. So while all of these things really deserve their own respective thoughts, I just have to say this: really, high speed internet? What an entitled and distorted society we live in.

Namesake

Tagged as: Amusing, Ridiculous Dec 30

Amelia Earhart‘s parents must not have been at all surprised by the career that she chose. Hopefully the outcome is more positive than her namesake’s, though. Oh well, I guess that everyone needs to have a “thing” huh?

Late breaking news! There is a huge surge in babies named Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, and Warren Buffet.

Later breaking news! All of that wealth still makes it quite hard to get through the eye of that needle.

iPhone Attention Deficit

Tagged as: Mac, Rant, Ridiculous, Seen-Around Oct 16

While there are many advances in mobile technology, there is none more prominent (nowadays anyways) than the Apple iPhone. Subsequent to its release in June 2007, it has made a definite mark on society. It has created huge lines, buzz in media, envy in people’s eyes, and a huge increase in revenue for the companies involved. Despite much hype and doubt, it has been a game-changing device for the smartphone world.

It has a user interface that is the standard to which all others are (now) compared, it is sleek, it is expensive enough to stay out of the hands of the less privileged (like Coach purses for girls), and it has an entire fanatical subculture to support it. There are some people who use it for its useful features, others who just want it so that they can be hip with the times, and others who will probably say that it’s an essential part of their life.

The thing is, I think that we need to help these people. Their iPhones are taking over their lives. Here we thought that Attention-Deficit Disorder (although this has been replaced by Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in psychology as of DSM-IV, but I could not apply the hyperactivity to iPhone users) was something that we could treat. Unfortunately it seems like we are inducing it in people. And while I am talking specifically about the iPhone, the general principle still stands that people are getting worse at maintaining their concentration on tasks at hand. They have instant messaging that they’re always connected to, text messages that encourage deplorable grammar, and the ever annoying Twitter (dumb as far back as 2007), which combines all of these things at one time.

Most people with iPhones seem to have an incessant need to check them. People need to stop this. They need to start living lives that do not involve the Internet. Let us move onward from our digital slavery!

I am slightly amused that I am writing such a thing for a couple of reasons:

1. Hello this is a blog, which is an entirely digital medium.
2. I am in front of a computer at least 8 hours a day as a software engineer. Usually more like 10, including off hours personal time.

Does God Clean Carpets?

Tagged as: Christianity, Ridiculous, Seen-Around Dec 17

When I’m driving around, I definitely notice when someone has Christian paraphernalia on their vehicle. This can range anywhere from a fish emblem to the more clever slogans to mysterious symbols that are a little more difficult to deduce. While I probably like seeing their proclamations of faith more than other things, it can still lead to pretty interesting results.

A little while back I saw a van in and around Los Angeles, CA with the slogan: God’s way is the best way

The van was for a company that cleaned carpets named Best Way Carpet Clean. In addition to the above slogan, they also had some fish stickers on their van. Oh and there was a website listed on the van, but it seemed to be out of commission when I tried to access it.

In any case, what is the real motivation for them to put that on their van? Seems to me that it is either because they hope:

1. It will get them business because people are Christian and they’ll trust another Christian
2. Non-Christians will think that Christians are more trustworthy so they’ll be hired

Whatever the reason, it seems to me that unless they made a special deal with God to miraculously clean carpets for them, it doesn’t have too much of a place in that environment. Not on their work van. As it is, it just seems like a ploy to get more business and hence make more money.

Lesson is: be a Christian anywhere (even as a rapper), but don’t do it out of incorrect motives. Even if we can’t figure it out, someone already knows when you have false intentions (where that someone is God).

Music Piracy Makes People Stupid

Tagged as: Entertainment, Humor, Life, Money, Rant, Read-It, Ridiculous, Tip-For-Life May 14

In an article at Yahoo! about cracking down on college music pirates, I read about one Sarah Barg, a sophomore from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It portrayed her as a girl who was just taking part in what everyone else was doing. The article wanted to put her in the role of one who is definitely not the worst (I mean she only downloaded 381 songs when others were downloading thousands!). In response to it all, Barg says

Obviously I knew it was illegal, but no one got in trouble for it

Now, I know that all higher education is not equal. And I know that maybe not all of them are as good as the University of California, San Diego, but that does not allow for such ridiculous thoughts. I think that ignorance is not a good excuse for doing wrong. The onus is on you to do what’s right. However, I think that actually knowing that something is wrong and yet still doing it speaks of some darker black.

In any case, I don’t think that it’s a matter of intelligence. I think it’s a sign of the times.

Piracy does not just affect music as I wrote in Even Worse Than At First Glance, Cheain’ Chinese, and (in regards to cheating in general) Cheaters 4 Life. Wow I did not realize that I had so many entries devoted to ranting about cheaters! But I digress.

Reasons why you shouldn’t be a (music) pirate:

1. You can afford the music (or whatever it is that you’re pirating).
• If you can’t afford it, you don’t need it.
• If you really can’t afford it, you have things that you should be doing other than listening to music anyways.
2. You can support and encourage the artists that you like to keep making music. It’s kind of like writing a blog and getting encouraged by people leaving comments. Except for them it’s people giving them money. I’m applying my energy to the wrong thing.
3. You know it’s morally wrong.
4. It’s actually against the law.

Now I admit that I’m not perfect, but I would like to think that once I knew the truth then I would change my behavior to match what I know. Not everyone is like this. But they should be. It just makes sense to have your behavior in line with your opinions, does it not? Don’t be the person who gets laughed at for coming off as stupid. Nobody wants 15 minutes of infamy.