Relaxed Focus

...

2012-01-27T10:58:00.000Z

Understanding Catholicism.

2012-01-27T10:56:00.000Z

This - "Many introverts feel there’s something wrong with them, and try to pass as extroverts. But whenever you try to pass as something you’re not, you lose a part of yourself along the way."

2012-01-27T10:54:00.000Z

In fact, damn near all this. More at the link.

The Power of Introverts: A Manifesto for Quiet Brilliance | LiveScience:

"Introverts prefer quiet, minimally stimulating environments, while extroverts need higher levels of stimulation to feel their best. Stimulation comes in all forms – social stimulation, but also lights, noise, and so on... So an introvert is more likely to enjoy a quiet glass of wine with a close friend than a loud, raucous party full of strangers.

It’s also important to understand that introversion is different from shyness. Shyness is the fear of negative judgment, while introversion is simply the preference for less stimulation. Shyness is inherently uncomfortable; introversion is not. The traits do overlap, though psychologists debate to what degree.

Cook: You argue that our culture has an extroversion bias. Can you explain what you mean?

Cain: In our society, the ideal self is bold, gregarious, and comfortable in the spotlight. We like to think that we value individuality, but mostly we admire the type of individual who’s comfortable “putting himself out there.” Our schools, workplaces, and religious institutions are designed for extroverts. Introverts are to extroverts what American women were to men in the 1950s -- second-class citizens with gigantic amounts of untapped talent...

Cook: How does this cultural inclination affect introverts?

Cain: Many introverts feel there’s something wrong with them, and try to pass as extroverts. But whenever you try to pass as something you’re not, you lose a part of yourself along the way. You especially lose a sense of how to spend your time. Introverts are constantly going to parties and such when they’d really prefer to be home reading, studying, inventing, meditating, designing, thinking, cooking…or any number of other quiet and worthwhile activities.

According to the latest research, one third to one half of us are introverts – that’s one out of every two or three people you know. But you’d never guess that, right? That’s because introverts learn from an early age to act like pretend-extroverts.

Cook: Is this just a problem for introverts, or do you feel it hurts the country as a whole?

Cain: It’s never a good idea to organize society in a way that depletes the energy of half the population...

Cook: Are you an introvert?

Cain: Yes. People sometimes seem surprised when I say this, because I’m a pretty friendly person. This is one of the greatest misconceptions about introversion. We are not anti-social; we’re differently social. I can’t live without my family and close friends, but I also crave solitude. I feel incredibly lucky that my work as a writer affords me hours a day alone with my laptop. I also have a lot of other introvert characteristics, like thinking before I speak, disliking conflict, and concentrating easily.

Introversion has its annoying qualities, too, of course. For example, I’ve never given a speech without being terrified first, even though I’ve given many. (Some introverts are perfectly comfortable with public speaking, but stage fright afflicts us in disproportionate numbers...)"

Training.

2012-01-27T09:20:00.000Z

1/27 - tricep kickbacks 6x6, bent over rows 6x6, wrist curls 3x15, 12m footwork/calisthenics
1/26 - AM - dips 6x6, shoulder side swings 6x6, superset drag curls/inc db curls 4x8, 12m footwork drills

PM - PruFit - 3 rounds - sledghammer tire swings, sandbag lunges, tire flips, db press - chins/close grip pullups/finisher

Vince Gironda, the classic old-school bodybuilding physique - Aspirational Motivation 101.

"Moriarty Was Real: I Believe In Sherlock Holmes."

2012-01-26T13:27:00.002Z

Pretty cool, geektastically speaking.
[And only really makes sense if you've caught the second series of the show. Which was *excellent.*]

Via New Sherlock Viral? Or Something Geekier? | Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors

Truth.

2012-01-26T11:38:00.003Z

Training.

2012-01-25T19:07:00.003Z

1/25 - AM - glute activation, supine hip raise + bird dog - goblet squats 3x20, superset calf raise + bent over calf raise 3x20 - 2x2m rounds heavy bag, 3x2m rounds shadowboxing
PM - chins [max rep] 19 - 3 rounds/metabolic pairs - sledgehammer/jump rope - sledgehammer/med ball slams - med ball slams/jump rope
1/24 - tricep rope pulldown 6x6, lat pulldown 6x6, rv curls 4x15, 12m shadowboxing

True Story.

2012-01-25T14:18:00.000Z

"Yes, this is tech support..."

2012-01-25T14:15:00.000Z

Childhood, in retrospect.

2012-01-25T14:12:00.000Z

"Sh*t Comic Book Nerds Say."

2012-01-24T17:23:00.000Z

Yep.

Reading - a bit over a year's worth of books...

2012-01-24T16:58:00.001Z

The 'reading/what I've read' posts on the blog continues to be an albatross of sorts. Been over a year since I've done a post - see here - of books I've read, when the original idea was 'read a book/write a quick review' and move on to the next. Complicated by two things I think... first is I tend to read a handful of tomes at the same time, so when I wrap up one I'd much rather keep reading the others than write anything up. The other reason is, much as the overall tone/raison d'etre of this slice of the internet has changed over the years, it doesn't feel quite as pertinent to... well, whatever.

First started throwing things up on the blog so when I first moved to Japan folks could see what was going on, the wife [before she joined me] and family could check out the apartment and and how life was progressing. Or when the geo-bachelor thing was happening a couple years ago it was a pseudo-connection of showing what TV I was watching/what I was reading/what daily life was life as some sort of bridge to the wife I wasn't around everyday...

Now, what with the advent of Facebook and Picasa Photo Albums and no longer living alone and all the other ways to stay connected in the early 21st... things change. Now the blog serves as more of way to hold myself accountable [diet, exercise, tech/life balance] and a place to vent about all the shit that makes me crazy in the world. The latter useful in that it hopefully curbs the desire to steal a sniper rifle at some point and find the nearest clock tower...

[Like I joked - hopefully - at a get together a few weeks ago, if I do lose my shit, no one can say it came out of nowhere. I'll never be described as the "quiet, nondescript, good neighbor" who one day, out of the blue, goes nuts. Not by anyone who frequents the blog, anyways. My damage is clear and way out there for anybody to read.]

Regardless, to the best of my recollection, over the last year [Dec 10 to end of Dec 11] every time I finished up a book I jotted down the title, at least. Lot of fiction this year, as more than a bit was read sitting bedside and at the hospital over the summer. Books of depth and requiring a great deal of thought didn't often make the cut. Anyways, all the stuff I remembered to write down, and brief commentary where I feel particularly verbose, after the jump... [click through if you're reading from the main page]

One of the best non-fiction books I read this past year was A Renegade History of the United States by Thaddeus Russell. I've always enjoyed the contrary and the counter-intuitive, that which debunks or puts paid to the conventional wisdom, and this book does it in spades. Perhaps my new favorite history book, supplanting Zinn's People's History as the best at exposing the pathetic generics we're force fed as kids. The book is filled with well documented stuff that flips the script on the standard history... Some of the more interesting examples:

A number of the Founding Fathers weren't the bastions of freedom and democracy we're told. Instead they were joyless, sanctimonious prudes who advocated for democracy precisely because it would limit and check the freedoms and liberties inherent in America, not promote them. Additionally, they didn't much care for capitalism, as it would give folks options, which inevitably would lead to "leisure," vice and degradation.
The blackface and minstrel shows of the slavery and Jim Crow eras weren't meant to mock or degrade blacks, but instead the motives of the minstrels lied in their envy and jealousies of the black and slave cultures. They longed for the perceived freedoms and liberties they saw in the slaves being outside the social, cultural and economic mores of "free" white men - a romanticism of the life of slaves. In short, because slave life was "cool." Blackface was the 'wigger' of it's era.
The group of women who did the most to lay the foundations for women's social, economic and political equality were prostitutes.

Breathe Smart: The Secret to Happiness, Health and Long Life - Aaron Hoopes - a simplified pranayama 101.

The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon - David Grann - real life Indiana Jones and historical mysteries. Awesome read. Also read his The Devil and Sherlock Holmes. More of a mixed bag, but pretty good.

The Day After and Other Stories - Wil Wheaton, actor of ST:TNG fame, has morphed into a hell of a writer.

The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet by Robb Wolf, The Primal Blueprint: Reprogram your genes for effortless weight loss, vibrant health, and boundless energy by Mark Sisson, The Protein Power Lifeplan by Michael R. Eades and Mary Dan Eades, Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution, Revised Edition. These books have served as the basis for my dietary changes over the past year. Down 37 pounds [as of this AM] and in better shape than I've been in in at least the last 7 years. Work in progress, but these are all great resources, imho.

Wheat Belly: Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health by William Davis, New Atkins for a New You: The Ultimate Diet for Shedding Weight and Feeling Great, Potatoes Not Prozac: Solutions for Sugar Sensitivity and The Sugar Addict's Total Recovery Plan, the last two both by Kathleen DesMaisons are other nutrition and food books I found really worthwhile.

Ultimate Warrior Workouts by Martin Rooney, Huge in a Hurry by Chad Waterbury, Xtreme Training by Randy Couture, We're Working Out by Al Kavadlo, Building the Classic Physique by Steve Reeves & John Little, The 4-Hour Body by Tim Ferriss, Ironman's Home Gym Handbook by Steve Holman, Slim, Calm, Sexy Yoga by Tara Stiles, Built for Show by Nate Green and Bring It! by Tony Horton - all training books, obviously. All from which I got good stuff, to various degrees.

Superman: Miracle Monday and Superman: Last Son of Krypton by Elliot S. Maggin. Old school, Chris Reeve/Superman movie era books. Good fun.

I re-read Richard Bach's Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, as I do every once in a while. One of the formative books of my life, first read when I was a teen.

I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell by Tucker Max. If Max's stories are true, dude's a sociopath. Tells funny stories though.

Shibumi by Trevanian and the authorized prequel Satori by Don Winslow - wildly entertaining spy/philosophy/ninja books. Pull quotes:

"Generalization is flawed thinking only when applied to individuals. It is the most accurate way to describe a mass, the Wad. And yours is a democracy, a dictatorship of the Wad."
"When one chooses to fight, it is one's responsibility to fight well."
"I am an admirer of beauty and, like all cynics, a disappointed romantic."

The Emperor's General by James Webb - fictionalized account of post-WWII Japan. Good read.

A Complaint Free World by Will Bowen. A worthwhile read on the advantages of reducing complaining, criticizing and gossip in your life.

Sandman Slim and the sequels Kill the Dead and Aloha From Hell by Richard Kadrey are all massively entertaining. Occult, hardboiled PI, magic, twisted, dark, hilarious. Awesome.

Miscellany - The Burning Wire by Jeffrey Deaver. The List of Seven by Mark Frost. Mentally Incontinent: That Time I Burned Down a Hooters, That Time My Stalker Crashed on My Couch, and Nine Other Stories from My Weird Life by Joe Peacock. The Templar Legion by Paul Christopher. SuperFreakonomics: Global Cooling, Patriotic Prostitutes, and Why Suicide Bombers Should Buy Life Insurance by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. The Point Man by Steve Englehart. The Inner Circle by Brad Meltzer. 52 by G. Cox. Stretch: The Unlikely Making of a Yoga Dude by Neal Pollack. The Thank You Economy by Gary Vaynerchuk. Dead Zero: A Bob Lee Swagger Novel and Soft Target by Stephen Hunter. Cool IT - The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming by Bjorn Lomborg. The Bad Attitude Guide to Good Citizenship by Claire Wolfe. Ghost Story [Dresden Files 13] by Jim Butcher. Entangled by Graham Hancock. 50 Things You're Not Supposed to Know: Religion by Daniele Bolleli. Run!: 26 Stories of Blisters and Bliss by Dean Karnazakes.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Graham-Smith was wildly entertaining. I finished it, I think, in less than 24 hours. That good. From the title alone, you probably know whether you'd dig it.

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain. Bourdain is an awesomely profane and literary storyteller. Enjoyed the hell out of this.

Over the summer and fall I read all 22 of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, including the spinoff Wicked Appetite. Extremely enjoyable. Occasionally light on plot, but outstanding characters, humor and dialogue. Quintessential summer "beach" reading, in the best sense of the term.

This month marked the second anniversary of the death of author Robert B. Parker. I discovered Parker my last couple years in Japan and simply devoured all of his Spenser novels - 40 of them in total over the last few years. His last Spenser novel, Sixkill, was published posthumously last year. A sad day. It looks like the Spenser series will be continued by writer Ace Atkins, whose Crossroad Blues I also read and enjoyed this past year, to try him out and see if he'd do Spenser justice. So the adventures will continue, and they'll probably be good reads, but they won't be quite the same.

There's something in the staccato rhythms Parker wrote in, the seemingly simplistic but ultimately complex beats of language and dialogue and description, the way he turned phrases and made observations that was just... marvelous.

But most of all, the thing that resonated most with the books, ostensibly about just another semi-hardboiled PI gumshoe working his way through the latest kidnapping or murder is that the stories were never about that, not really. They were about what it takes to be a person, to be a man, to maintain a relationship, about autonomy and life and about all the other important things that really matter. They're philosophy disguised as crime fiction.

So I've been working my way this past year through the rest of the Parker catalog - his young adult novels The Boxer and the Spy and The Edenville Owls. His Philip Marlowe novel Poodle Springs. His baseball book, that's not really about baseball either, Double Play. His Cole and Hitch series of westerns [all four of them - Appaloosa, Brimstone, Resolution and Blue Eyed Devil.] - which is almost as entertaining as his Spenser series. His Wyatt Earp novel Gunman's Rhapsody. And his standalone Wilderness, which might be his most introspective and autobiographical books, in some sense. I imagine I'll tackle his Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone series next.

The Detachment by Barry Eisler. Combines characters from several of his novels into one uber-Magnificent Seven-A Team-style-superspy/assassin thriller. Great read. Plus, this:

"'You don't think it can happen here? Do yourself a favor... Google COINTELPRO, or Operation Mockingbird, oh, and especially Operation Northwoods. You might also look intoOperation Ajax, Operation Gladio, Operation Mongoose, and the so-called Strategy of Tension. And those are just the ones that have leaked. There are others. Unless you think the Reichstag Fire and the Gleiwitz incident and the Russian apartment bombings were unique to their respective times and places and could never happen elsewhere, least of all in America. But you don't strike me as that naive.'"
'Was nine-eleven an inside job, too?'
'It wasn't, though the way it's been exploited, it might as well have been. But are you arguing that because not all cataclysms occur behind a false flag, that none of them do?'"

Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith by Jon Krakauer. A history of the Mormon faith, mixed in with tales of its violent and fundamentalist offshoots. Outstanding book. I don't think you could finish it without understanding just how bugfuck crazy and transparently false this religious movement is. [And then, if your mind could bear the consideration, you'd realize how those observations apply to all faiths.]

Tune in Tokyo: The Gaijin Diaries by Tim Anderson. A 'teaching in Japan' retrospective by a NC native, so there's a bit of 'my life' crossover. Fun read.

Comics, Collected Editions
The Ultimates: Ultimate Collection and The Ultimates 2: Ultimate Collection by Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch. Ultimate Comics Avengers Vol 1: The Next Generation by Mark Millar and Carlos Pacheco. Super Friends! Volume 1 and Volume 2. The Punisher: Welcome Back Frank by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon. Warren Ellis' Apparat: The Singles Collection. Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin run, first 3 volumes - Batman Reborn, Batman Vs Robin, Batman and Robin Must Die. The Waiting Place: The Definitive Edition by Sean Mckeever and Mike Norton. Doom Patrol: We Who About to Die by Keith Giffen. DC's Greatest Imaginary Stories, Vol 2: Batman and Robin. Vertigo Pop: Tokyo Days, Bangkok Nights. Two-Step by Warren Ellis, Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti. The Invincible Iron Man Omnibus by Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca. Iron Man: Extremis by Warren Ellis and Adi Granov. Iron Fist: Immortal Weapons. Green Lantern: Secret Origin by Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis. Booster Gold: Day of Death and The Tomorrow Memory by Keith Giffen. The Incredible Hercules: World War Hulk by Greg Pak and Gary Frank. Suicide Squad: Trial by Fire and Suicide Squad: From the Ashes by John Ostrander. Infinity, Inc: The Generations Saga V1 by Roy Thomas and Jerry Ordway. Morning Glories Volume 1 & Volume 2 by Nick Spencer and Joe Eisma. Mage: The Hero Discovered by Matt Wagner. New Teen Titans: Games by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. Stumptown by Greg Rucka and Matthew Southworth. The Question: Pipeline by Greg Rucka and Cully Hamner.

Maybe my favorite series from the last couple years, including this past one, has been Gail Simone's Secret Six. Damaged anti-heroes and villains join up to wreak havoc, explore dysfunctional psyche and generally fuck things up. Funniest book I've read in a damn long time. Think 'The Dirty Dozen' but with better dialogue and flashier costumes.

All the editions of the series, thus far [I haven't gotten the last one yet] - Villains United, Six Degrees of Devastation, Unhinged, Depths, Danse Macabre, Cats in the Cradle, The Reptile Brain.

CDC comprised of puritanical idiots, apparently.

2012-01-24T09:30:00.000Z

What will it take to get these jackasses to go on a vacation out of our fucking lives? Nothing more annoying than people who think they've a right to save you from yourself, and know exactly what you need to do to make that happen.

More at the link...

CDC: If You Drink Enough to Enjoy It, You've Had Too Much - Hit & Run : Reason Magazine:

"...According to the CDC, this scientific evidence conclusively demonstrates that you should never consume more than three or four drinks (depending on your sex), even if you refrain from driving, stay away from chainsaws and forklifts, avoid bar fights, and carry a condom—or even if your entire "binge" occurs within the confines of your home.

Perhaps anticipating that many of her readers will disagree with the CDC, Parker-Pope claims binge drinkers consume "an average of eight alcoholic beverages within a few hours," which is pretty impressive but not actually true. First, as noted, the length of an "occasion" is left to the respondent's interpretation; it could be "a few hours," but it might be five or six, or an entire Saturday. Second, the number Parker-Pope cites is actually the average for "the largest number of drinks [respondents] had on any occasion in the preceding 30 days" (emphasis added). In other words, it is atypical, by definition, for any given individual..."

Aldous Huxley speaks wise - "The people who make wars... are never the publicans and the sinners..."

2012-01-24T09:21:00.001Z

Nothing scarier or more dangerous than the ones certain they are doing the right thing in the name of whatever their pure and just cause is.

Via Liberty For All » Blog Archive » People who make wars:

"“The people who make wars, the people who reduce their fellows to slavery, the people who kill and torture and tell lies in the name of their sacred causes, the really evil people in a word - these are never the publicans and the sinners. No, they’re the virtuous, respectable men, who have the finest feelings, the best brains, the noblest ideals.”" - Aldous Huxley

Not entirely incorrect.

2012-01-24T09:13:00.000Z

Strikes me as very taoist, keeping in mind I've got a piss poor understanding of the tao. Maybe more zen, then. Or zen-ish, at least.

You've got to be of a certain era and inclination to even get this.

2012-01-24T09:08:00.000Z

Awesome.

*Hint*

Training.

2012-01-23T21:20:00.000Z

1/23 - AM - wg neck press 6x6, lateral raise 6x8, drag curl/inc db curl superset 4x8, 12m footwork - PM - PruFit - sandbag complex, 5 rounds, clean/squat/press/row/high pull + calisthenics
1/22 - deadlifts 3x20, standing calf raises 3x20, seated calf raises 2x20, donkey calf raises x20, 12m footwork/defense/movement

NO. EXCUSES.

"The world is like a ride at an amusement park..."

2012-01-23T14:35:00.000Z

"The world is like a ride at an amusement park. And when you choose to go on it, you think it's real because that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round. It has thrills and chills, and it's very brightly coloured, and it's very loud and it's fun, for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long time, and they begin to question - is this real, or is this just a ride? And other people have remembered, and they come back to us. They say 'Hey! Don't worry, don't be afraid, ever, because, this is just a ride.'

And we... kill those people.

Ha ha ha.

'Shut him up!

We have a lot invested in this ride. SHUT HIM UP! Look at my furrows of worry. Look at my big bank account and family. This just has to be real.'

But it's just a ride. And we always kill those good guys who try and tell us that, you ever notice that? And let the demons run amok.

But it doesn't matter because: it's just a ride.

And we can change it anytime we want.

It's only a choice.

No effort, no work, no job, no savings, and money. A choice, right now, between fear and love.

The eyes of fear want you to put bigger locks on your doors, buy guns, close yourselves off. The eyes of love, instead, see all of us as one.

Here's what you can do to change the world, right now, to a better ride. Take all that money that we spend on weapons and defense each year, and instead spend it feeding, clothing and educating the poor of the world, which it would many times over, not one human being excluded, and we could explore space, together, both inner and outer, forever, in peace." - Bill Hicks

Cooking/Food Log.

2012-01-23T14:27:00.001Z

Relatively clean, 6 days... a diet soda in there and some starchy carbs/white rice at a dinner party. Once again, food prep early in the week - roasting a couple chickens and an baking an egg, bacon & cheese dish - keeps impulse snacking at bay with ready and easily accessible foods.

Also washing and chopping a bunch of veg early in the week makes it easy to throw together food for the Mrs.

Free/carb up day - quesadillas & guac, chips, beer, some whiskey & coke, fried chicken and fries... the standout food was actually paleo, strictly speaking. Bacon wrapped dates, a recipe I saw and wanted to try out and cooked up for a Game of Thrones get together we had at the apt. Damned good, if I do say so myself.

"What business is it of yours..."

2012-01-23T14:00:00.000Z

This. All day, every day. Always.
And that's direct physical harm, mind you.
Your hurt feelings or vague sense of unease or worry "for the children" does not equal
my.
fucking.
problem.

Tweaking the "Weekend Luddite" - Ongoing.

2012-01-22T13:02:00.000Z

Work in progress balancing my time online and off, detailed here.

Two weeks in, varying degrees of daily compliance, though on balance, more successful than not. More focused, feeling like I'm getting more accomplished during the day.

Minor tweak, based on two weeks real world application...

*No Internet Monday through Saturday from 0700-1300.*

Training.

2012-01-21T11:47:00.000Z

1/21 - Conditioning Circuits - 2x1m rounds chins, hyperx, pushups, sledgehammer swings - 2x2m rounds boxing pad combos, defense/wall drills - [post conditioning] wrist control/arm drag drills
1/20 - tricep kickbacks 6x6, bent over row 6x6, wrist curls 3x15 - 12m footwork drills - relaxed stretching

Using training to fight multiple sclerosis = Awesome - Bodybuilding.com - Body Transformation - Managing The Monster: Active Living With MS:

Training.

2012-01-19T20:39:00.000Z

1/19 - AM - dips 6x6, db lateral swings 6x6, superset drag curls/incline curls 4x8, 12m footwork/defense
PM - PruFit - 9 exercise bodyweight circuit - towel chinup finisher x2
1/18 - AM - goblet squat 3x20, calf raise 6x20 - 3x2m rounds shadowboxing, 3x2m rounds heavy bag, Bas Rutten MMA Workout/Thai Boxing
PM - MMA Circuit Training - kicking drills/thai pads & partner leg raises - touch sparring, jump rope, sandbag shoulder press/lunge
1/17 - tricep/band pulldown 6x6, lat pulldown 6x6, rv curl 4x15, 12m rebounder, GTG ring dips, pullups, grip compressions

Wil Wheaton breaks down SOPA & PIPA - talks sense, speaks wise. All straight, no chaser, no nonsense.

2012-01-18T16:19:00.000Z

Truth bombs, everywhere. Much more at the link.

Today the US Senate is considering legislation that would destroy the free and open Internet:

“Why is it that when Republicans and Democrats need to solve the budget and the deficit, there’s deadlock, but when Hollywood lobbyists pay them $94 million dollars to write legislation, people from both sides of the aisle line up to co-sponsor it?” --Reddit Founder Alexis Ohanian on CNBC.

"I put this on my Tumblr thing earlier today, but I'm reposting it here, because it's important to me.

'....The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has looked at tomorrow’s “Internet blackout” in opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)—and it sees only a “gimmick,” a “stunt,” “hyperbole,” “a dangerous and troubling development,” an “irresponsible response,” and an “abuse of power.” “Wikipedia, reddit, and others are going dark to protest the legislation, while sites like Scribd and Google will also protest. In response, MPAA chief Chris Dodd wheeled out the big guns and started firing the rhetoric machine-gun style. “Only days after the White House and chief sponsors of the legislation responded to the major concern expressed by opponents and then called for all parties to work cooperatively together, some technology business interests are resorting to stunts that punish their users or turn them into their corporate pawns, rather than coming to the table to find solutions to a problem that all now seem to agree is very real and damaging.”

Can I interrupt for a moment? Thanks. When you complain that opponents didn’t “come to the table to find solutions”, do you mean that we didn’t give NINETY-FOUR MILLION DOLLARS to congress like the MPAA? Or do you mean that we didn’t come to the one hearing that Lamar Smith held, where opponents of SOPA were refused an opportunity to comment? Help me out, here, Chris Dodd, because I’m really trying hard to understand you.

“It is our hope that the White House and the Congress will call on those who intend to stage this “blackout” to stop the hyperbole and PR stunts and engage in meaningful efforts to combat piracy.”

Riiiiiiight. Protesting to raise awareness of terrible legislation that will destroy the free and open Internet is an abuse of power, but buying NINETY-FOUR MILLION DOLLARS worth of congressional votes is just fine.

...I am 100% opposed to SOPA and PIPA, even though I'm one of the artists they were allegedly written to protect. I've probably lost a few hundred dollars in my life to what the MPAA and RIAA define as piracy, and that sucks, but that doesn't come close to how much money I've lost from a certain studio's creative accounting. The RIAA and MPAA are, again, on the wrong side of history. Attempting to tear apart one of the single greatest communications achievements in human history in a misguided attempt to cling to an outdated business model instead of adapting to the changing world is a fucking crime. A free and open Internet is as important to me as the bill of rights. I don't want the government of one country -- especially the corporate-controlled United States government -- to exert unilateral control over the Internet for any reason, especially not because media corporations want to buy legislation that won't do anything to actually stop online piracy, but will expand the American police state, and destroy the Internet as we know it. Please contact your Senators and US Representatives, and tell them to vote NO on SOPA and ProtectIP. The future of the Internet -- and the present we take for granted -- depend on it."

A God & Jesus I can get behind.

2012-01-18T16:09:00.001Z

In cartoon form, of course.

And lest you think that last bit about marijuana fighting cancer is so much hippie bullshit, allow me to help educate your tragically narrow world view:

Marijuana Cuts Lung Cancer Tumor Growth In Half, Study Shows

Cannabinoid action induces autophagy-mediated cell death through stimulation of ER stress in human glioma cells

U.S. Government Repressed Marijuana-Tumor Research

Combining marijuana components enhances inhibitory effects on brain cancer

In the immortal words of the late, great Bill Hicks:

"Pot, right. Why is marijuana against the law? It grows naturally upon our planet. Doesn't the idea of making nature against the law seem to you a bit... paranoid? You know what I mean? It's nature. How do you make nature against the fucking law? It grows everywhere. Serves a thousand different functions, all of them positive. To make marijuana against the law is like saying God made a mistake. You know what I mean, it's like God on the seventh day looked down on his creation: "There it is, my creation, perfect and holy in all ways. Now, I can rest." [Mimes God looking around - spotting pot] "Oh my me." "I left fucking pot everywhere." "I should never have smoked that joint on the third day ..shit." "That was the day I created possums. Haha. Still gives me a chuckle." "If I leave pot everywhere that's gonna to give humans the impression they're supposed to... 'use' it." "(sigh) Now I have to create Republicans." And God wept. I believe is the next verse. You know what I mean? I believe that God left certain drugs growing naturally upon our planet to help speed up and facilitate our evolution. Okay, not the most popular idea ever expressed... Do you think magic mushrooms growing atop cow shit was an accident? Where do you think the phrase, 'that's good shit' came from? Why do you think Hindus think cows are holy? Holy shit! That's God little accelerator pad for our evolution."