tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-142776902024-03-07T18:53:12.630-06:00The rantings, observations, and discussions of a progressive conservative.Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-61588619226665941492007-05-03T10:52:00.000-05:002007-05-03T12:07:13.715-05:00

As I anxiously await my trip to see the midnight premier of Spider-man 3, I can't help but think about the success of not only the recent movies but of the comic and the TV shows it has also spawned.Being a reader of John Eldredge's books, I see a definite case for the idea of Spider-man and many other pop culture &/or literary heroes serving as role models for us in real life.A great

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-90066576753522198002007-05-02T12:20:00.000-05:002007-05-02T12:29:08.652-05:00

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Nebraska hog producer Joy Philippi says livestock farmers "are having jitters" over ethanol, worried there won't be enough corn left for the pigs.(read the whole thing)Join the crowd, the beef industry is worried about the certain increase in corn prices that will result from the use of corn as the primary ethanol source. We already have so many staple uses for corn, and the

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-63552570178365391382007-05-01T12:22:00.000-05:002007-05-01T12:36:15.234-05:00

Cheney Draws Protests Even at BYUCan I just state for the record that Cheney was welcomed on Auburn's campus when he visited to speak at a graduation, with the exception of one comment made by the Alumni Association speaker for that commencement. But the comment in question was an attempt to make Cheney look bad by using the Auburn Creed that ultimately only made the speaker look arrogant and

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-17785755609606369572007-05-01T11:34:00.000-05:002007-05-01T12:20:32.205-05:00

With the AP reporting more incidents of melanine in animal feed, this time in chicken feed, it was easy for this to slip through the cracks: Nearly a half million pounds of imported fish is sitting idle in Alabama warehouses because testing shows it contains chemicals banned in the United States. Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries Ron Sparks said testing done by his department

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-37933140284221980152007-04-26T15:15:00.000-05:002007-04-26T15:40:31.286-05:00

This just arrived in my inbox:Haley Center has been evacuated due to a bomb threat this afternoon and will be closed for the remainder of today. The threat was received at 2:06 p.m. by phone at the 911 Center. Law enforcement is investigating the situation. More details will be announced later about the rescheduling of classes.Finals start next Tuesday here on Auburn's campus.I'll post more if I

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-22880480304683337952007-04-26T11:29:00.000-05:002007-04-26T11:47:13.036-05:00

And I have to comment, this is a genius marketing movie by Disney. What better way to have your advertising for a blockbuster movie being released in the end of May to persist through the melee of advertising for a competing blockbuster in the first week of May? A netroots posting of the trailer on blogs all over the place.I may not be fond of Disney, but I really have enjoyed the Pirates

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-52209022613861361942007-04-26T09:38:00.000-05:002007-04-26T10:11:39.807-05:00

So I was going over the traffic for this site (or lack there of, due to my inactivity on here in the last few days) and I came across a referral from a Yahoo! search for "auburn university majorette and dance line tryouts 2007". At the time I checked the link, this blog came up as the second search result.Guess I'm moving up in the world, though that wasn't really the subject I wanted attention

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-77017726252986850892007-04-18T10:43:00.000-05:002007-04-18T15:32:54.186-05:00

I as I surfing through blogs on Blog Explosion, I noticed a sidebar link called PayU2blog.I was intrigued, so I followed the link. From the homepage of this "enterprise":Make money blogging. Earn quick money by completing easy assignments in your blog. We pay you to mention products, services and companies, on your blog. (emphasis added)This is disgusting, but I guess it was only a matter of

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-13272575657647397902007-04-18T08:18:00.000-05:002007-04-18T08:57:26.136-05:00

Being in the army is like being in the Boy Scouts, except that the Boy Scouts have adult supervision. Blake Clark (from The Quotations Page)It's funny how something random can trigger a memory. In particular, this quote triggers a memory of a discussion I had with my father over dinner a few months ago. Since I've been in the career search process for sometime now, it often becomes the

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-67159384662024179682007-04-17T08:51:00.000-05:002007-04-17T14:49:58.547-05:00

The talking heads keep talking about the "VT Massacre", not that it doesn't deserve attention, but this is too much attention. And VT is getting a bad wrap unfairly on one specific point: the notification of students on campus as to what was going on.The media seem obsessed with the 2-hour gap between the first shooting and the campus-wide email. They think the whole campus should have been

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-25167627249153960212007-04-16T12:36:00.000-05:002007-04-16T12:59:25.048-05:00

The question was posed Friday evening on Slashdot as to whether schools should block Wikipedia:Should we block sites such as Wikipedia because students may be exposed to misinformation, or should we encourage sites such as Wikipedia as an outlet for students to investigate and determine the validity of the information?Any educator or school administrator worth their salt will be concerned about

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1176323436023682792007-04-16T11:00:00.000-05:002007-04-16T11:02:19.484-05:00

Last week, Slashdot pointed out a NYTimes article on the growing idea of a Code of Conduct for bloggers. Slashdot also linked to a discussion on Blogging Wikia where a potential code is being discussed and developed.While dozens if not hundreds of examples of blogging and commmenting misbehavior can be presented (including, but not limited to threats, misrepresentations, & mis-/non-attributions)

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1176307303328160352007-04-11T10:44:00.000-05:002007-04-11T12:05:30.336-05:00

This came across the AP wire last week about a study on the use of technology in primary education.The study found achievement scores were no higher in classrooms using reading and math software products than in classrooms without the new products.(read the whole thing)Here's the link to the original study conducted by the National Center for Educational Evaluation and Regional Assistance.I've

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1176229595397563982007-04-10T12:56:00.000-05:002007-04-10T13:26:35.413-05:00

Most folks outside of Auburn won't care about this outside of it being a good example of a horrid smear campaign. This was originally posted on another blog I started just for this topic.-------From The AU Majorettes are Safe: The Idiocy Continues:The committee updated their website. Of course, their newest statement is full of holes, so I'll quote and correct it here:Thank you for your

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1176132896324077572007-04-09T09:38:00.000-05:002007-04-09T10:34:57.446-05:00

WeatherJeff has a good post on ethanol as an alternative fuel and the potential impact.Growing up on a cow-calf production cattle farm in Alabama, I've had an interest in this topic and it's potential effects. Any farmer will tell you that lower fuel prices are a good thing, but the problem with using ethanol from corn is that we already use corn for so much. It's basic economics: if the US

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1175710127703743002007-04-04T12:54:00.000-05:002007-04-04T13:08:47.716-05:00

So, as I have started blogging here again, I began some clean-up here on the site and looked through some of the info I collect through traffic counters and Technorati. I was surprised to find a referral to a specific post I didn't think would get this kind of attention. Your Code of Ethics included a link to my attempt at a code of ethics for blogging in a list of examples of blogging ethics

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1175702543646433902007-04-04T10:57:00.000-05:002007-04-04T11:02:23.656-05:00

Australian research suggests Power Point is counterproductive in the learning and working environments (via Slashdot).If you have ever wondered why your eyes start glazing over as you read those dot points on the screen, as the same words are being spoken, take heart in knowing there is a scientific explanation.It is more difficult to process information if it is coming at you in the written and

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1175699372434785632007-04-04T09:46:00.000-05:002007-04-04T10:09:32.446-05:00

Okay, so I know I've been absent for almost 11 months now, but maybe I'll get started back to doing this on a regular basis. I need the practice writing at the very least.I came across a piece by Michael Barone the Instapundit linked to a couple of weeks ago that caught my attention, mainly because he was stating the obvious on a subject many willingly ignore: "The Blame-America-First Crowd"I

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1148269393996428642006-05-21T20:59:00.000-05:002006-05-21T23:18:21.000-05:00

Ok, so I'm sitting around on a Sunday evening watching my cable TV like the bum I am. Unfortunately, three of my favorite channels have chosen to pander to the mindless masses and feature Da Vinci Code-related programs. This inspires me to write to briefly touch on this subject and its inherent stupidity.Mainly, I'm going to point to the major flaws of this "conspiracy" that is pointed out in

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1148169928200941322006-05-20T18:40:00.000-05:002006-05-20T19:05:52.430-05:00

Hattip to my friend the Ninjew for pointing this out to me:Iranian officials on Saturday denied a report published by the Canadian National Post on the previous day, claiming that a new dress-code law was passed in Iran this past week, which mandates the government to make sure that religious minorities - Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians - will have to adopt distinct color schemes to make them

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1148163215599842832006-05-20T16:46:00.000-05:002006-05-21T22:46:19.453-05:00

Chances are you're going to Hell. Just thought I'd let you know. ;-)This was a comment posted just a little bit ago on my post Is this really how you intend to win believers?. Apparently, the author of GOP Christian wanted to leave me that message. Somehow, he came to this judgment of me by reading my previous entries. I'm not sure how, or even why, but he is definitely wrong. Of course, I

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1144948114745449772006-04-13T11:58:00.000-05:002006-04-13T12:08:34.763-05:00

Well, it's been a while to say the least. What's happened in 4 months? Well, I no longer read the blogsphere so much (unfortunately). After college graduation, I shifted priorities to future plans, specifically the job search, though that has turned up nothing thus far. I've been working for my family at the farm, but I'm looking to start a career of my own as soon as I can. I did interview

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1134768289038188532005-12-16T15:24:00.000-06:002005-12-16T15:24:49.086-06:00

Crossed the stage, shook the hands.

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1134763312694104872005-12-16T14:01:00.000-06:002005-12-16T14:01:52.733-06:00

Let the Pomp & Circumstance begin.

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14277690.post-1134738194423399362005-12-16T07:00:00.000-06:002005-12-16T07:03:14.440-06:00

I'd like to apologize again for my extended absence. The last two months have been devoted to class work in the hopes I would graduate. Incidently, today is Auburn's graduation, and I will be participating. Be looking for updates via cell phone during the day.-the Progressive Conservative

Matt Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13935665487172627783noreply@blogger.com0